Mandla Ncikazi has opened up about his decision to leave Orlando Pirates and return to Golden Arrows as head coach.
Ncikazi had been absent from the Pirates bench in the early stages of the campaign, with the club confirming he had undergone knee surgery.
The 57-year-old coach brought an end to a five-year spell with the Buccaneers, having joined the Soweto giants from Abafana Bes’thende in 2021.
He explained that he walked away from Pirates because he felt he had accomplished everything possible at the club and was eager to test himself in a new environment.
“I thought with gratitude, where I’m coming from, I think I achieved everything as a coach. I’m grateful to the big institution and all the memories,” said Ncikazi.
“I thank the supporters for sharing such memories with them. Then your next phase, after you have won everything, now as a coach, maybe [go for] a different challenge. Let me go back, work with young players, challenge myself.
“I don’t want to retire as a coach, not having the stress that I have today. I thought it was an opportunity for me when Arrows gave me the opportunity. I said the club is still very close to my heart.
“The highest position that Arrows ever achieved was in my presence. We broke almost lots of records, maybe that crave was still there.
“Now we have a challenge right now. At the time when I started, I had the time. Right now, there’s not too much time. We have another game on Tuesday. So we want to train certain aspects, but we are playing games. But that’s the responsibility of a coach.”