Stellenbosch FC head coach Steve Barker has disclosed what he told Lehlohonolo Mojela, who missed the majority of the last campaign due to a knee injury.
Following his stellar displays at the start of last season at the club, Mojela suffered a knee injury that put him on the sidelines for almost the entire campaign. He had already scored six goals in nine appearances at the time of his injury.
The 29-year-old has now fully recovered and is getting his mojo back. Mojela was influential over the weekend when Stellies beat 15 de Agosto of Equatorial Guinea 4-1 in the second leg of the CAF Confederation Cup’s Second Preliminary Round at Athlone Stadium. As a result, the Cape Winelands-based outfit progressed to the group stage of the Confederation Cup with a 4-1 scoreline on aggregate.
The talented frontman, Mojela, won a penalty for his side, which was converted by Thato Khiba.
To top it off, Mojela was unlucky not to find the back of the net after his goal during the match was ruled out for offside. In the current season, Mojela has already featured in 13 matches across all competitions for Stellies; however, he is yet to score a goal.
‘IT WAS A DIFFICULT INJURY TO OVERCOME’: STEVE BARKER
Barker revealed that he informed Mojela that he was finally regaining his confidence and that he was impressed by the recovery he made following his injury layoff.
“I had a good chat with Bradley early in the week to tell him that he is slowly getting back. It was a difficult injury to overcome, and in terms of his full rehabilitation, he is still getting there,” said Barker.
“I always wanted to use the CAF preliminary stage games for him to get those minutes, and today [Sunday] I was very pleased with his effort and his commitment and his energy.
“We all know what Bradley can do, and he created a typical Mojela moment to create the penalty for us in the first half. It’s good to see him moving a lot better than what I’ve seen in the last couple of weeks.
“I’m very pleased for him that he was able to do that, and he probably could have continued [for the full 90 minutes,] but being on the yellow card, we just were a little bit hesitant to push him all the way just in case he got his second yellow.”
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