And then there were three: Safa at last finalises technical director candidates

After Neil Tovey vacated the job in 2020, the crucial position is yet to be filled

14 June 2022 - 19:59 By Sithembiso Dindi
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Safa technical committee chair Jack Maluleka says they have finalised three candidates for the technical director position.
PENDING Safa technical committee chair Jack Maluleka says they have finalised three candidates for the technical director position.
Image: Sydney Mahlangu/BackpagePix

After promising to finalise the appointment of a new technical director before the end of March, SA Football Association (Safa) president Danny Jordaan and head of the technical committee Jack Maluleka have explained why the federation has still not filled the position.

Safa has not had a permanent technical director for two years since Neil Tovey left the crucial position, that oversees junior and senior national teams and development structures, when his contract came to an end in 2020.

Head of coach education at the association Frans Magashoa has been acting in the position since then.

Jordaan said technical director is a crucial position on Safa’s organigram and admitted there’s urgent need to fill it, but it can only be done once Jack Maluleka and his technical committee finalise their selection and recommendation process.

“We want to finalise this because it’s an important position. As soon as they are ready, we will make the appointment. They [the technical committee] have been busy with interviews,” Jordaan said.

In March, Maluleka said Safa would finalise the appointment by the end of that month, which did not materialise.

We want to finalise this because it’s an important position. As soon as they (NEC) are ready, we will make the appointment.
Safa president Danny Jordaan

However, the head of the technical committee has told Sunday Times Daily that the interview process has been concluded and the committee has selected its preferred three candidates.

The names will now be tabled before the national executive committee (NEC) to make the final decision.

“We have made our recommendations, but unfortunately in the previous NEC meeting on March 25, it was not on the agenda because we brought it forward too late,” Maluleka said.

“But I think it will definitely be on the agenda at the next NEC meeting because we are done with the recommendations.

“Now we will hear from the NEC who they choose among the candidates that we’ve recommended. I can tell you that we will have a technical director very soon because we need to finalise it now.”

While Sunday Times Daily does not know who the three candidates vying to replace former Bafana Bafana captain Tovey are, the publication has been informed that three are South Africans.

Quite a few names have been linked with the position since last year, but some of them are believed to have withdrawn their interest.

Former Kaizer Chiefs chief scout Walter Steenbok was one of candidates on Safa’s three-man shortlist a while back but it’s not clear if he is still in the running.

The new technical director will be in charge of the direction of SA football, development of players and training of coaches.

The technical director will also work closely with Bafana coach Hugo Broos in SA’s chase for success. 

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