This time, opposing teams will have the Capetonians at the top of their agenda
IN FOOTBALL, a head coach is only as strong as the technical team he surrounds himself with. Appoint a few yes-men, assistants who don’t question and have little influence, and watch everything implode. But a coach who brings on board hard-working, strong-minded assistants with the necessary passion to challenge, to contribute, and it creates a feverish, motivated environment that rubs off on the players.
Cape Town City’s assistant-coach Ian Taylor was the man who quietly offered advice and guidance during Eric Tinkler’s success last season – and, in the upcoming campaign, he’s just as ready to do his all for the new man in charge, Benni McCarthy. In fact, the coaching duo is probably among the youngest in the PSL, with Taylor 40 years old and McCarthy set to turn 40 in November this year.
Taylor, since hanging up his playing boots, has always been passionate about development coaching. He is now the head of development at City while, at the same time, acting as McCarthy’s assistant. He will also take charge of the Cape club’s Reserve Team in the Multi-Choice Diski Challenge, where he is responsible for ensuring that the conveyor belt continues to churn out toplevel footballers for McCarthy to utilise in the PSL.
“Benni is obviously new to coaching, so it’s going to be interesting to watch him develop this season,” said Taylor. “Already, at training, we can see he is bringing in new ideas and adding something different. Essentially, though, things won’t differ all that much from what Eric (Tinkler) did last season. While there’s no real reason to change too much, under Benni there will be small tactical changes.
“Importantly, because the squad, the playing personnel, hasn’t changed, how much does Benni need to change? The same players are here, the same tactical discipline we had last season will be there, so there’s continuity and that’s good as we prepare for the new season.”
Taylor, though, admitted the one thing both he and McCarthy are aware of is the need to be a little unpredictable. Because City, in their debut season last time out, were a new entity, they surprised quite a few teams. The opposition never quite knew what to expect and, as a result, by the time they had settled down, they were already losing. This time, opposing teams will have the Capetonians at the top of their agenda: City are one of the teams to beat.
“I think, towards the end of last season, the opposition teams were already starting to work us out,” said Taylor. “So we need to be a step ahead this time, we need to be able to change things tactically, and we certainly cannot be too predictable. And I think we have the players to do so.”
In terms of new players, Taylor believes the signings of striker Ayanda Patosi, veteran midfielder Teko Modise, Mozambican defender Jeitosa and winger Lyle Lakay make City even stronger. And, in addition to the quartet, the Cape club added two new local names to the squad over the past few days – Taariq Fielies from Milano United and Craig Martin from Glendene.
“There’s no need to elaborate on what Patosi offers, he showed what he is capable of when playing in Belgium,” said Taylor. “He has been under the radar somewhat in recent times and this is an opportunity for him to get back on track. He has a lot of quality players around him, so there’s no reason why he cannot get among the goals.
“As for Lyle, I always liked him when he was at Celtic, and he’s fitting in nicely. I played against his dad (former Stephanians and WP winger Sean Lakay) many times and I see him as being a good asset for the team. Aubrey Ngoma will be out for another four months (after an operation), so Lyle will play a vital role. He is different to Aubrey, but just as effective. He can cross, he can shoot and his defensive work on the flank is solid.
“I coached Taariq when he was a junior at Ajax, so I know him quite well. He is not just a good defender, and great in the air, he is also very comfortable on the ball. He was one of the best players at Milano last season and, when he came for a trial with us, Benni was very impressed.
“Craig is a right-wingback I’ve been monitoring at Glendene. I initially wanted him for the Diski Team, but Benni liked what he saw, and we signed him up for the PSL squad. He is still raw and needs some work; he will probably play in the Diski while we watch his progress and improvement.”
Overall, Taylor and McCarthy are looking forward to the season, confident City can continue where they left off.
“We’ve got the squad, and it’s probably even better,” said the City assistant-coach. “We want to improve, but we know it’s going to be difficult. We over-exceeded expectations last time by finishing third, but there’s real quality in this squad and there’s no reason why can’t do better.”
Benni is obviously new to coaching, so it’s going to be interesting to watch him develop this season,” said Taylor. “Already, at training, we can see that he is bringing in new ideas and adding something different.