Stellenbosch FC head coach Steve Barker has played down his amazing record against Eric Tinkler, saying the latter has built Sekhukhune United into a formidable side.
The rivalry between some of the top two South African coaches, Barker and Tinkler, seems to be growing every season, and we are about to witness the two coaches facing each other again in the MTN8 semi-final on Saturday and Barker has enjoyed the battle between the two as he has won most of the games.
This will be the second time they face each other for the second time since Tinkler took over at Sekhukhune United mid-last season and Barker stated that he won’t look much at the history or listen to what Tinkler has said, instead, they will focus on themselves.
“No, I think we’ve got to stick with what we know. He’s with a different team now; he didn’t have many games at Sekhukhune, where we got the better of them, it was more at Cape Town City,” Barker told the media.
“He’s got a different type of team, a different type of team, a different way they play. So, I don’t listen to that. It’s about what we want to achieve. If he’s having sleepless nights, then rather him than me, but we have to be honest, Sekhukhune are a strong squad.
“He has turned them into a really solid team. They’ve got seasoned professionals. They’ve signed well, they’re an ambitious club, similar to us, since their promotion, they’ve been competitive. They’ve been in finals themselves, semi-finals.
“So, they’re a proper football team, well coached, and so, yeah, it’s going to be an exciting challenge.”
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