Stellenbosch FC mustn’t complain – Barker

South Africa’s Stellenbosch FC’s coach Steve Barker has spoken on the demands of competing on the domestic and continental fronts.

The Stellies are juggling among the South African Betway Premiership, Carling Knockout and the CAF Confederation Cup. The 2024 Confederation Cup finalists also reached the MTN8 final and lost to Orlando Pirates recently.

Barker’s men defeated Golden Arrows 4-3 in a midweek game two days after returning from the Equatorial Guinea where they faced 15 de Agosto de Akonibe.

This weekend, the Western Cape-based team will switch back to the Confederation Cup preliminary assignments when they host Akonibe.

Instead of complaining about the congestion of the fixtures, Barker has looked at the benefits of competing on all the fronts.

“We are all professionals, football team players are professionals,” Barker told his club’s media. “They get paid for their profession, and I’ve always said it, and I keep saying it, that we must not want to be playing in Africa and then complain about playing in Africa.

The coach said his re-assembled squad is benefitting from travelling for long hours together on the continent.

“We want to be playing in Africa, and we don’t mind where we play. I do think it also builds a bit of resilience in a team. I mean, we had to spend five days together, whether it’s on a plane in an airport, on a bus at a hotel. And I think that brings a team together.

“We brought in a number of new players and I think that actually enduring a little bit of hardship might, in the long run, be good and what we need,” Barker explained.

Why sees Barker’s involvement in many competitions as a blessing

The former Bidvest Wits player described his team’s improved performances in continental and domestic competitions as a privilege.

“But, the motivation is that we can still have a really special season. We’ve made a cup final already, we’re in the quarter-final of Carling, and if we can make the CAF group stages… The motivation is never to not be hungry to succeed,” the coach added.

“We’ve got to have that desire to keep winning things and competing at the highest level. I’ve just had to try to manage the squad in a way that freshens it up a bit, and there were some fresh legs out there today.”

Barker has since switched his attention to Sunday’s Confederation Cup game against 15 de Agosto.

“Sunday’s [second leg against 15 de Agosto] is perhaps another opportunity to give other players minutes, and hopefully by doing that, we can manage the games that are coming thick and fast,” he said.

“It’s a privilege to be playing on the continent. There are over 1000 clubs playing on the continent, and [we’ve been nominated for the CAF Club of the Year], which is just really special.”

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