Chippa United coach Brandon Truter has accused the media of pushing the narrative that he should be sacked, insisting that the club is working to shed its reputation for frequently dismissing coaches.
Truter made the comments after the Chilli Boys suffered a heavy 4-0 defeat to Golden Arrows in the Carling Knockout Cup last weekend, bringing their cup campaign to an end.
Chippa have managed just two wins in nine matches across all competitions this season, recording five draws and three defeats.
However, Truter believes the team has made progress, pointing to what he considers a better start to the campaign compared to last season.
“Yeah, there’s been a lot said in the media about me still being around. I don’t really read it a lot. But when I open something, I see they say I should have been fired or whatever,” said Truter.
“It’s not nice, it’s not nice, Chippa last season, in December how many games [had they won], December, One. Where are we now? So, how’s the start? How is the start? But the media is driving a narrative that I should be fired, that I should be gone.”
Truter added that South African football is losing some of its talented coaches because of the growing narrative around dismissing coaches whenever results do not go their way.
“We’re losing a lot of coaches in this country. Steve Barker, Manqoba [Mngqithi], Pitso [Mosimane] is back now, Rulani [Mokwena] is gone. Eric [Tinkler] just came back, we’re driving [this narrative],” he continued.
“The younger coaches, they need to grow, they need some experience, they need some guiding hands as well. And a lot of our top, top coaches are leaving the country. And that’s because…yes, there should be pressure, there’s always pressure. We must win the games; we are entertainers as well.
“But sometimes, and that’s the part that we…let’s be quiet. Let’s be mindful of what we talk. Let’s check what we put in there as well.
“But Chippa at this moment, there’s a culture that the chairman wants to create. He wants to get rid of the stigma [of firing coaches] as well. He understands the processes.
“We are a bit better than we were last season as well. This is a team at this moment that is doing well, playing well at one moment, yes. We all know the problem at this moment of scoring goals.”
Truter and his charges have responded in the best possible way after beating Stellenbosch FC 2-0 on Saturday to move into seventh place.