Thursday, February 13, 2025
HomeBetway PremiershipMohafe Admits Mistake About Appollis

Mohafe Admits Mistake About Appollis

Polokwane City head coach Phuti Mohafe has admitted that he never believed Oswin Appollis would make it upon his arrival at the club.

The diminutive attacker was snapped up by Rise and Shine from Motsepe Foundation Championship outfit Pretoria Callies in July 2023 and has gone to become an integral part of the team.

The 23-year-old has nailed down a regular berth in head coach Hugo Broos’ Bafana Bafana set-up and was part of the squad that claimed bronze at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Ivory Coast.

This campaign, Appollis has found the net twice in 15 appearances across all competitions, with his contribution having propelled the Limpopo-based outfit to third place behind league leaders Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates in second spot.

Mohafe told Andile Ncube on Sports Night Live With Andile that he had doubts about Appollis at first but that the player’s change in attitude and fight remain some of the factors that made him crack the Bafana nod.

“When Appollis came to the club I was one of the people that didn’t believe he’d make it,” the 50-year-old coach said.

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“I told him he deserves to play for the national team but he had to change his attitude and fighting spirit. Since then he’s gotten better & better.”

The ex-Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila mentor also heaped praise on the Bafana man for remaining focussed despite the transfer rumours, with the coach also seeing the Cape Town-born attacker staying longer at the club.

“When I look at Appollis I see a focussed player who is not distracted by all the rumors,” Mohafe continued.

“With the possibility of him moving I don’t have power or a say over it, as the technical team we are not even thinking about his replacement.

“Even for the long-term, I think Polokwane City is the team for Oswin Appollis and we don’t want to lose a player of his calibre.

“We are building a brand at Polokwane City, and we need him in it.”

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