Promoted Magesi FC are going about their preparations for the forthcoming Betway Premiership away from the glare of the media in Polokwane and coach Clinton Larsen is happy for the underdogs to fly under the radar.
Magesi, who earned automatic promotion to the Premiership by winning the Motsepe Foundation last season, will take part in the elite rank for the first time. Larsen — a star winger in the Manning Rangers combination that won the inaugural Premier Soccer League (PSL) in 1996-97, who also played for Orlando Pirates — says his team give that daunting undertaking “a big fight”.
As they prepare, Magesi have learnt valuable lessons from the demise of Cape Town Spurs, who were relegated back to the Motsepe after season in the PSL.
“The reason there is no attention on us is because nobody thinks we are going to do anything this season,” Larsen said.
“If a survey is done now, Magesi will be one of the favourite teams to go down at the end of the season. That is exactly what we must expect, but at the same time that’s the beauty of football and we have a reason as a club to prove people wrong.
“We have a reason to earn the respect, not only of our peers but from the football-loving people in general. Nobody is giving us a chance to survive. We have a coach who was written off, players who were written off and we are giving it a new lease on life.
“We have a club that has never played in the PSL, so we have our backs against the wall here. But that’s exactly how I like it — I like being the underdog and we are going to give it a big fight.”
Larsen said the delay of the start of the season to next month has worked in their favour.
If you don’t know what you are doing, you will probably find you are over-training players and they don’t peak at the right time. You will pick up injuries during preseason because you are over-training
— Clinton Larsen, Magesi FC coach
“We are now seven weeks into our preparations. Initially we were preparing for the league to start this week but that hasn’t happened because of the delay. We had to re-adjust our periodisation to take that into consideration.
“The delay gives us more time to work and be ready for the start of the season next month. The extra time also helps in terms of integrating new players. We are trying to make sure we play as many friendlies as we can.”
Aware of the physical demands of the top flight, Larsen feels it is important Magesi have roped in an experienced fitness trainer.
“It is important to have a professional fitness trainer who understands periodisation, issues of loading, intensity and volume. These are the things that you need to understand from a scientific point of view, in terms of not overloading the players. A seven-week programme has just become [effectively] almost 12 to 13 weeks.
“We have to take that into consideration — with breaks in-between, which will allow players to freshen up and recover over this long period. We are mindful of that and fortunately we have enough experience within our technical team to be able to make necessary adjustments.
“If you don’t know what you are doing, you will probably find you are over-training players and they don’t peak at the right time. You will pick up injuries during preseason because you are over-training.
“It is a sensitive time of preparation. You have to be careful and your fitness coach becomes important in terms of his understanding of periodisation, loading and recovery.”
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