Will championship winning Sundowns’ gaffers be snubbed again?

Manqoba Mngqithi decided to keep his thoughts to himself about the Coach of the Season award following the controversial awarding of it to former AmaZulu head coach Benni McCarthy last season.

Mngqithi and his partner, Rhulani Mokwena, guided Mamelodi Sundowns to what was a fourth successive DStv Premiership title last season but the powers that be decided to crown McCarthy as the best coach following his turnaround act at Usuthu. McCarthy turned the KwaZulu-Natal outfit into a powerhouse, gave Downs a run for their money in the title chase and ended up as runners-up.

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This season, the Masandawana duo have been pitted against coach of top flight debutants, Royal AM, who spent most of this season occupying the second spot. They have an opportunity to regain that Caf Champions League spot if they win their final league game against the champions elect – Sundowns. John Maduka has been responsible for Thwihli Thwahla’s success and is holding thumbs for last season’s fiasco to unfold.

Meanwhile, Eric Tinkler of Cape Town City is the third finalist for the coveted gong as he too is chasing a top two finish in the league. Asked on whether he expects the status quo to continue this season, Downs coach Mngqithi returned a polite “no comment”, saying he does not have the appetite to comment on things he has no control over.

Traditionally, the Coach of the Season award has usually been given to the league winning coach but last season crowning of McCarthy put the spanner on the works and it remains to be seen what the script holds in the next episode of the Premier Soccer League awards.

The ceremony is scheduled to take place next Sunday after the Nedbank Cup final between The Brazilians and Marumo Gallants at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium. The event will be televised live on SABC and SuperSport.