‘Why does it take so long for me to get a work permit?’: Gallants coach Kerr

Marumo Gallants coach Dylan Kerr is tearing his hair out again over his paperwork after waiting five weeks for his work permit to come through.

As if fighting relegation with the last-placed team in the DStv Premiership were not stressful enough, Kerr once again finds himself in the stands for matches, while he waits for his paperwork from the department of home affairs, as he has at his previous clubs in South Africa.

Gallants host USM Alger in the Caf Confederation Cup at Dobsonville Stadium on Wednesday (3pm). Their form in Group A of the continental competition, where they are in second place after two wins and their defeat in Algeria to USM Alger last week, has been a welcome confidence boost for the Premiership wooden spoonists.

At Swallows FC it took a month for Kerr, who has dual Maltese and English citizenship, to have his permit updated at a team also battling the drop in the 2021-22 season. In his previous stint at Gallants, also fighting relegation in 2020-21, the process also took many weeks.

Kerr said being in the stands in the period where he is trying to instil his gameplan at a new club is far from ideal.

He made an example of a substitution — of Monde Mphambaniso, who had a flat first half but was improving when he was taken off in the second — that was botched in Gallants’ 3-1 Nedbank Cup last 16 defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns in Bloemfontein on Thursday.

“I have got five work permits in my passport. The problem for me is, I’m in the system, so why does it take so long for me to get a permit?” Kerr queried.

“I will do due process, I will follow the rules, we apply legally. But Romain Folz got his work permit at AmaZulu within four days, and I’m still waiting.

“The frustration is I was walking through the streets of Bloemfontein and being stopped by supporters congratulating me on the team having done really well even though we lost [against Sundowns].

“But they said, ‘Why did I take Monde, my little midfielder off?’ I told them it was a miscommunication.

“He wasn’t having a great first half and I said to Sly [Mosala, Gallants’ assistant coach] at halftime, ‘Maybe have a look at Monde for the first 16 minutes of the second half and we’ll bring him off and put some pace on the flanks’.

“In the second half I pointed at [Sibusiso] Sibeko and shouted, ‘Take Sibeko off’, and Sly must not have heard. As the sub went on I saw Monde coming off and boos went around the stadium.

“That’s the frustrating part of the way it has been. At every club I’ve been at it’s always taken five, six games before I got to sit on the bench.

“Those first games are important because it’s when a new coach needs to get his team to play the way he wants them to.”

Gallants won admirers for their attacking game against trophy machines Downs at Free State Stadium. Kerr said he was also pleased with his team’'s showing in the cup match, having made eight changes from the previous line-up in their Confed defeat in Algeria.

Marumo stayed in Bloemfontein for their league game against TS Galaxy on Sunday, which they drew 0-0 to leave the nomadic team on 19 points in the Premiership, two behind 15th-placed Maritzburg United.

Since Kerr took over in late January Gallants have won four, lost two and drawn one of their seven games. With three of those victories coming in the Confed and Nedbank Gallants remain endangered in the Premiership.

Marumo lost their away game against USM 2-0 on February 26. They beat Libya’s Al Akldar 4-1 at home and St Eloi Lupopo 2-1 in Democratic Republic of the Congo in their other two Confed group games.

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