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Ricky Zililo Sports Reporter
HIGHLANDERS FC coach Kelvin Kaindu is skating on thin ice by being absent from the team’s off-season which is the crucial stage in terms of laying a foundation for the 2014 campaign. Kaindu is in his native Zambia, attending a high-profile Caf A Licence Coaching Clinic in Lusaka which will end on Friday, January 24.
Unconfirmed reports suggest that Kaindu will travel to England to attend classes he missed for an Uefa B coaching course after the Caf A badge.
He is likely to join Bosso around mid-February, meaning he will have at least two weeks with the Highlanders squad before the start of the 2014 Premiership season.
There are fears that the gaffer who led Bosso to their first major cup win in seven years, the Mbada Diamonds Cup last November, might hide behind the finger when results do not come his way.
Robert Ndlovu, a vocal Highlanders follower and critic who commands respect among his team’s supporters especially on the social networks, raised his concern on the absence of Kaindu at this stage.
“It is Kaindu who knows which players he wants and to be honest, it is not normal for a coach to be absent at such a crucial stage because it is always his head that is on the block. If he wins, as supporters we give him glory but when he loses, we still want him to be accountable,” said Ndlovu.
In the absence of Kaindu his newly appointed assistant coaches Mark Mathe and Peter Nkomo have been conducting the pre-season training with the help of Bekithemba “Super” Ndlovu who is said to be doing a “handover-takeover” to the new guys.
Kaindu left a wish list to the club’s leadership at the end of last season and two of the players that he wanted to retain, Masimba Mambare and Njabulo Ncube, have since left for Dynamos and FC Platinum respectively.
Munyaradzi Diya, Milton Ncube and Peter ‘Rio’ Moyo who are on national duty at the Chan finals in South Africa are yet to put pen to paper while Bosso are keeping their fingers crossed to land Warriors’ striker Charles Sibanda and defender Eric Chipeta of Hwange.
Ndlovu said it was disturbing that Kaindu is not always available whenever his input is required to identify talent.
In the last two years he has missed some weeks of the mid-season transfer window by travelling home.
“We understand that he (Kaindu) is furthering his knowledge in football but we have been monitoring what happens every time the window opens Kaindu travels to Zambia. My question is, will he accept the players chosen by his assistants?
“To be honest factionalism exists at Bosso with others bent on seeing the executive failing while some believe the executive is not interested in their ideas but above all, it is what happens on the field of play during competitive matches which matters. So Kaindu must not be
caught in these political things and concentrate on his job that is building a strong squad to challenge for honours,” said Ndlovu.
During the mid-season window in 2012 the club got striker Cleopas Dube from ZPC Hwange to bolster their strike force but the towering player was hardly given ample game time despite showing some flashes of brilliance.
At the beginning of last season in the absence of Kaindu the assistant coaches Bekithemba Ndlovu and Tembo Chuma identified Douglas Sibanda after their friendly match against Gwanda Ramblers and the defensive midfielder hardly played at Bosso.
The Zimbabwe Soccer Coaches Association chairman Bhekimpilo Nyoni said it is the head coach’s prerogative to choose his players.
“By right the head coach has to be there for pre-season so that he identifies players he believes suit his style of play. The way the assistant coach might view talent is different from what the head coach would and therefore it is important that the latter be present and listen to the former’s suggestions.
“What makes Highlanders issue delicate is that there are new assistant coaches and I doubt very much whether Kaindu has met to outline his expectations to the new guys since he has been in Zambia. Nonetheless, in my opinion he should have been around because the club will demand results from him and not his subordinates,” Nyoni said.
A seasoned coach from Bulawayo who declined to be named said; “Kaindu can turn around if results don’t come his way and say the squad was prepared in his absence. Recruiting players is like a jigsaw puzzle because one would want to put together the pieces. The head coach must be there to make decisions regarding players.
“What Kaindu has done is to cost the club potentially good talent as no good player in his rightful sense will waste his time coming for trials knowing that the person responsible for decisions is not around.”
However, Kaindu enjoys the support of his bosses. Club chairman Peter Dube said:
“It is not fair to criticise our head coach because at Highlanders there are systems in place which make the institution different from others. His absence at the moment does not affect the team’s preparations and when I talk about us having an effective system, you will see that we are the only club with a handover-takeover procedure that allows continuity.
“We value the views of the people but Kaindu communicated to us about his programme and we have come a long way in coming up with a very competitive squad in the last two seasons with Kaindu at the helm. We have faith in our coach, the technical team and the players we have.”
He said they are still pursuing the players on the coach’s wish list and said they will issue a statement once they are done with their signings.
Already Highlanders have bagged Valentine Ndaba from Shabanie Mine. He is a good midfielder who wins and attacks well. Khumbulani Banda has arrived from How Mine where he was on loan and Welcome Ndiweni has signed from FC Platinum.
Online Reporter