Sekhukhune United head coach Eric Tinkler has revealed the reasons behind the loan signing of Orlando Pirates defender Tshepho Mashiloane.
Babina Noko secured Mashiloane on a season-long loan deal from Pirates to strengthen their defence after having an impressive start to the 2025/26 Betway Premiership season.
Sekhukhune have emerged as early league title contenders after collecting 20 points in the opening nine games of the campaign. They claimed six wins, drew twice, and suffered defeat only once.
Meanwhile, in the past transfer window, Sekhukhune were one of the busiest teams, bringing in a handful of new faces to build a solid squad. The Limpopo-based outfit signed players such as Bradley Grobler, Toaster Nsabata, Manuel Sapunga, Tsepo Matsimbi, Olerato Mandi, Renaldo Maarman, Sphiwe Mahlangu, Sidney Malivha, Malekgene Mampuru, Medupi Thokolo, and Miguel Timm.
Sekhukhune closed off their transfer window with the signing of the Pirates defender, Mashiloane. Interestingly, the 23-year-old arrived at the Buccaneers in the off-season from Baroka FC; however, he has been loaned out to gain top-flight experience.
TSEPO MATSIMBI’S INJURY FORCED SEKHUKHUNE TO SIGN MASHILOANE
Tinkler has shared details on Mashiloane’s move, revealing that the signing of the right-back was prompted by the injury to Matsimbi.
“Mashiloane is a copy of Matsimbi because Matsimbi was playing as a centre-back at Black Leopards, and now we turned him into a right-back,” Tinkler said.
“So Mashiloane also has that ability to play in the back four as a right centre-back or in the back three as a right centre-back, and he can play as a right full-back.
“In the modern game, players need to have more than one profile, and I think he fits that profile very well. Truth be told, it was a last-minute signing because of what happened to Matsimbi. So he wasn’t really on our radar from the beginning.
“He played against us when we played against Pirates, he played as a right-back. For me, it made sense to bring him in because we had Shaun [Mogaila] and Matsimbi.
“This season, we want to push for the top three, and we need experienced players. With Matsimbi injured, we don’t want Shaun thinking he’s guaranteed the starting line-up, so we added that pressure on him.”
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