Notwane rebuilds from scratch, target top four
Kabelo Boranabi | Monday October 26, 2026 06:00
The former Premier League outfit has been forced into a rebuilding exercise after losing nearly its entire squad from last season, leaving Tebele to assemble a largely inexperienced team drawn from development structures and the lower divisions. However, while the rebuilding process presents an uphill battle, the coach believes his youthful charges can grow into a competitive outfit capable of challenging for a place among the league's leading teams. Toronto's new-look squad endured a baptism of fire on Saturday, suffering a 3-0 defeat to Dinare FC at Buffalo Park in Ramotswa. The hosts struck inside the opening minute through debutant Thabiso Boti before two late goals condemned Notwane to a disappointing start to the campaign.
Despite the result, Tebele maintained that his side had prepared adequately for the encounter, but costly mistakes and inexperience ultimately proved their undoing. 'The way we prepared, we implemented our plan. It is only that my players, some of them are inexperienced in terms of playing in First Division. They are from the lower leagues, but they will keep gelling as time goes on,' he said. 'Those mistakes that we made, cost us goals, they punished us. I'm hoping that it's the first game, we are learning, going forward we rectify the mistakes.'
Notwane's rebuilding exercise comes at a time when the club is attempting to rediscover its competitive edge in the second tier, having previously enjoyed a lengthy spell among Botswana's top-flight clubs. Tebele revealed that the scale of the player exodus had left him with little choice but to turn to emerging talent, retaining only a handful of experienced campaigners to provide leadership. 'I have lost almost the team that played last season, almost all of them. We introduced more of the small boys coming from the development teams, coming from the regional teams,' he explained.
'From the players that I have, four or five senior players that we are actually building on top of that. So I think with time the players will actually respond well,' Tebele stated. The squad overhaul has inevitably raised questions about Notwane's ability to compete against more established promotion contenders, particularly in a league where experience and consistency often prove decisive. Nevertheless, Tebele is setting the bar high, insisting that a top-four finish remains the primary objective despite the challenges facing his relatively inexperienced squad. 'We are aiming for top four. That is our most target, top four, so that we can actually see ourselves in top four. If we fail top four, we fall on top six,' he said.
While the opening-day defeat exposed some of the vulnerabilities within his youthful team, Notwane showed glimpses of improvement after halftime, defending with greater organisation and occasionally threatening on the counterattack. For Tebele, those encouraging passages offer something to build upon as he attempts to transform a hastily assembled squad into a competitive unit.