Bright start for First Division's youngest coach
Chakalisa Dube | Friday October 26, 2018 12:38
In their first league match, Angels played to a 1-1 draw against league returnees, Palapye All Stars before their weekend win against Real Movers in Francistown.
Eleven Angels who face former Premier League side, Nico United tomorrow, occupy fifth position on the log; two points behind leaders Green Lovers.
Angels are the only team making their debut in the Debswana-backed league. “It has been difficult to plan for matches because we have not played our opponents before.
“At the moment we are not playing an open game because we do not know our opponents. We play with a lot of caution and less creativity. We, however, do very intensive preparations ahead of every match and it has worked well so far,” he said, adding that despite their cautious approach they have proved that they are no pushovers.
The 26-year old Mpatane noted that his players have adjusted quickly to the demanding FDN.
“One of the reasons we have adjusted quickly in the league is because we have played very gruelling matches in the past. The support we have got from the people of Francistown has been impressive,” he said.
He added that the team would greatly change its style of play in the second stanza of the season.
“After the first round we would have studied all our opponents. This will give us an opportunity to play our creative game and plan for our opponents accordingly. We are a creative and ball playing team,” said Mpatane.
Mpatane added that a number of companies have started showing interest in backing the team. He said so far 020 Holdings, a Francistown-based company, has sponsored the team with transport for the whole season.
“We are not that struggling in terms of resources. However, in order for us to fight for honours, we need more resources. We will soon be approaching more corporate entities and individuals to assist us with funds,” Mpatane said.
In April this year, Mpatane achieved a rare feat by becoming the youngest coach to guide a Division One team to the FDN league promotion play-offs.
He dominated the play-offs and ultimately earned promotion to the elite league. Mpatane has often maintained that his goal is not to fight for honours this season, but rather to retain the club’s FND status.