It is back to square one for Richards Bay after they failed to lure Mandla Ncikazi away from Orlando Pirates.
Although it is not clear whether Ncikazi declined Bay or not, he won’t be Bay coach, for now, unless something drastic happens, well-placed sources have told iDiski Times.
Bay placed Ncikazi as their number one target for the head-coaching role, and went as far as approaching Pirates to release him from his contract.
But the former Golden Arrows coach appeared to be happy to be assistant coach at Houghton club, who he joined in 2021.
It means Bay will have to look elsewhere for the new coach and this has put pressure on the club since the pre-season is in full swing.
They had initially announced they would announce their new head coach on Monday, but this won’t be the case, as they are back to square one.
But of the coaches who are out there on the local market and who are without the clubs, none of them seemingly meet the demands of Bay’s management.
It means Siboniso Gumede, who was appointed as the assistant, will continue with the pre-season plans along with Sibusiso Msomi in the meantime.
Bay are without a head coach after they let go of previous head coach Vasili Manousakis along with his two assistants – Pitso Dladla and Ronnie Gabriel after the poor second half of last season, where they won just one game in all competitions.
After sitting second on the table before the 2022 FIFA World Cup break, they almost fell into the relegation zone, which infuriated chairman Sifiso Biyela to trigger their stay by ending it all together.
They finished 13th on the DStv Premiership table with 33 points, three points ahead of the two relegated sides – Maritzburg United (via the play-offs) and Marumo Gallants, who were automatically relegated.
