Bright, Stanojlovic axing; It was a case of �when� and not �if�

Thuso Palai | Tuesday February 25, 2014 09:55

For me, it was a case of 'when' as opposed to 'if'. Coaching is a very unstable job and anything can happen at any time. With the so called big teams, it is always expected that when results don’t come they would pull the trigger, and usually the bullets are aimed at the coach. It was no surprise when I got wind of the news that Major David Bright and Dragjo Stanojlovic were in murky waters.

Gaborone United’s Major David Bright has been suspended indefinitely pending a disciplinary hearing. When a coach is suspended it usually spells the end. It is not common for a coach to be suspended and then get reinstated. Yes; there are chances that Bright might come back but it is highly unlikely. The reasons for Bright’s suspension have not been put forth, and we have had to rely on unsubstantiated hearsay and rumours. Until and unless we know what really prompted this suspension, we cannot say much. There are many stories and theories as to why he was suspended, top of the list being that he had a tiff with the Club executives over which players to play and pick for games. Well; Bright is a very steadfast, proud coach and I’m sure he would not appreciate being bullied into picking someone else’s team while he is coach.

Gaborone United is a team with high expectations and they always expect to challenge for each and every silverware. With the off field shenanigans, maybe that was not to be and hence the suspension. We await to see whether he will be reinstated, but like I said, it is highly unlikely. Whatever happens, we await the outcome of the disciplinary hearing and maybe we will get to know what is really going on. One thing I’m sure of is that there is a lot more to this than meets the eye.

After a lot of dilly-dallying, Mochudi Centre Chiefs finally parted ways with the out of place Dragjo Stanojlovic. For me, he should have gone a long time ago as he was out of his depth. He was like a fish out of water. He was out of his comfort zone. He was lost. Maybe he is a good coach, but he was never going to make it in the Botswana League. First of all he cannot effectively communicate with players and that posed a great challenge. He was quite irritable and could not relate well with the players. The players then tended to play for themselves rather than for the coach, as they did not have a lot of confidence on him.  In his short stint at the helm, he never inspired much confidence and most Magosi faithful had long been calling for his head. Secondly, Dragjo, as he was popularly known, has never coached in Africa and for him it was more of a culture shock. He had to settle in to our way of doing things, and from the look of things, he did not manage to adjust.

With Dragjo, there was always that uncertainty. Magosi faithful were not as confident and noisy as they usually are. The last straw for the management was when the team lost to Nico United. That prompted an introspection and he was fired. The reasons advanced were that the team was not performing to expectations. Listening in on an interview done by a Centre Chiefs official, he said they had been misled by Dragjo’s agent and they thought they had appointed a world beater, while it was not the case. I have always had my doubts about Dragjo but those at the helm at Magosi were quick to dismiss my doubts.

In relation to Dragjo, I hope teams will do their through research in future before appointing coaches, especially those from abroad. The two decisions were largely expected. Everyone knew that at one point, something like that would happen. For many, it was just a question of ‘When’, and I was really not surprised when they were made.