Dean Workman

Tembo deserves his moment of glory

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Kaitano Tembo, head coach of Supersport United hoisted by players as they celebrate victory during the MTN8 2019 Final

SuperSport United coach Kaitano Tembo tasted the fruits of years of hard work when he hoisted aloft the MTN8 trophy on Saturday evening. It was a landmark moment for the coach and those who aspire to follow in his footsteps, writes DEAN WORKMAN.

The Zimbabwean has been in South African football since 1998 when he joined Seven Stars FC before going on to begin what would be 20-year relationship with SuperSport United.

His playing career spanned seven years from 1999 to 2006, captaining the side for a period before retiring and moving on to a coaching career within the club’s youth structures.

After earning his stripes, he became assistant to Cavin Johnson at the club and after a year he was called upon to step up as caretaker manger, albeit for just five games.

He then went on to work under managers Gordon Igesund, Stuart Baxter and Eric Tinkler before eventually being appointed caretaker manager for a second time. This came as Tinkler stepped aside with the team battling relegation in the 2017-18 season after the effects of their run to the Caf Confederation Cup final hampered their league form.

Tembo, though, managed to guide his team away from the drop and eventually sneaked into the top eight and was rewarded for manufacturing the turnaround with the permanent position of head coach of the club.

He almost got his role off to the perfect start when his side made it all the way to the MTN8 final for a second consecutive season, where they would play Cape Town City in a replay of the match that had Tinkler win the trophy with SuperSport.

This time, though, it was Benni McCarthy’s men who came out on top after a penalty shootout made Tembo suffer heartbreak.

The team was then hit with a number of injuries to the likes of Bradley Grobler, Dean Furman and Evans Ruisike, but the Zimbabwean coach rode the wave and eventually guided Matsatsantsa to a sixth-place finish in the league.

This season SuperSport have started on fire and for the third season in a row progressed all the way to the MTN8 final after wins over Bidvest Wits and Mamelodi Sundowns.

Then, on Saturday evening came Tembo’s crowning moment as his side edged Highlands Park 1-0 to win the 2019-20 MTN8.

‘My first trophy, but at the same time I have to give it to the guys, since day one we have been a family, they accepted me. We got into the final last season [lost to Cape Town City on penalties] but we kept on working,’ Tembo told SuperSport after the game.

‘The players bought into my philosophy and they are the ones running with it now, so it makes it easier for me – that’s why I give it to them and the technical team.

‘The board, the CEO Stan Matthews, I know he always gives me a hard time because he believes in me, I really appreciate that, even the the chairman as well. It’s not easy for them to give an opportunity to someone like me but I really appreciate that,’ he said after his side’s victory at the Orlando Stadium.

What the 49-year-old said about being handed an opportunity runs true throughout a league where local coaches are overlooked for foreign ones.

By winning a piece of silverware, Tembo has not only secured his job moving forward but has shown to all and sundry that continuity and hard work can bring success.

The SuperSport United mentor fully deserves his moment of triumph and by the looks of things, it could just be the start.