By Editorial
There is no doubting the championship-winning pedigree of Gavin Hunt.
The newly unveiled Kaizer Chiefs coach is arguably the second-best manager of the PSL era, sitting comfortably behind his great rival Pitso Mosimane, having won four Premiership titles, two premier cup tournaments, an MTN8 and Telkom Knockout titles.
He now has the unenviable task of using every ounce, every stratagem, and every trick in the book drawn from two decades of coaching experience to return the Glamour Boys to glory.
Indeed, it might not be an overexaggeration to proclaim that every season he has spent as a coach, and every title he has conspired to lift, has led the 56-year-old to this point in time.
The pressure on Hunt at Naturena will be immense – Chiefs have not enjoyed any success for the last five seasons – but the cumulative experience gleaned from managing Seven Stars, Hellenic, Black Leopards, Moroka Swallows, SuperSport United and most recently Bidvest Wits, will leave Hunt in good stead.
Hunt’s time to plan this revolution is short, while the fanfare that greeted his appointment last week, brief as it has been, must now be consigned to history.
On the weekend of October 9 the 2020/21 domestic season kicks off and the Amakhosi faithful and club administration alike will expect results immediately.
They will not tolerate, as was proven with the failings of former coach Ernst Middendorp, any slip-ups, nor a continued and prolonged trophy drought under Hunt’s reign.
Targeting and winning the MTN8 in the coming months is therefore a priority in the short term, while lifting the Premiership title should always be at the forefront of his ambitions, his actions and words.
There will be no room to manage expectations or excuse poor performances.
From his first match in charge, there will have to be signs of continued improvement, proof of life that his Chiefs team will accept victory only.
Nothing less will be acceptable, and if there is one man who can plot Chiefs’ route back to silverware and to the peak of the South African footballing mountain, then it is surely Hunt.
The Star