Tinkler finds new home at Sekhukhune after City exit

As expected, Sekhukhune United have confirmed the appointment of Eric Tinkler as the club’s new head coach.

The former Orlando Pirates and Cape Town City coach replaces Lehlohonolo Seema who was surprisingly fired by Babina Noko last week despite leading the club to a top four position and also reaching the quarterfinals of the Nedbank Cup where they’re set to play Mamelodi Sundowns in a rescheduled clash.

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The game, which was set to take place at the Lucas Moripe Stadium last Saturday, was postponed due double-booking of the venue as the stadium was also scheduled to host an Under-17 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualifier between South Africa and Nigeria.

Following Seema’s sacking, The Citizen reported that Tinkler was the favourite to take over from him. And now Sekhukhune have confirmed the former Bafana Bafana midfielder’s appointment as the club’s new head coach.

“Tinkler is an accomplished football coach with over 30 years of experience in the game. He holds UEFA and CAF A licences with numerous other prestigious coaching badges,” read a statement from Sekhukhune on Tinkler’s appointment.

“The new head coach is no stranger to success, having previously won the MTN 8 and Telkom Knockout tournaments and reaching numerous finals in the CAF Champions League, CAF Confederation Cup, and other domestic competitions.”

Sekhukhune chairman Simon Malatji expressed his excitement at Tinkler’s signing.

“We are honoured to have an experienced mentor like Tinkler in charge of our project,” said Malatji.

Tinkler, who was sacked by City in December following a poor run of bad results, will be joined by his Marc Van Heerden as his assistant.

Van Heerden joins Tinkler at Sekhukhune

Word is that Tinkler will keep Paulus Masehe as his second assistant and will release first assistant Kaitano Tembo. Masehe and Tembo were appointed as interim coaches after the sacking of Seema last week.

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Tinkler’s first game in charge of Sekhukhune will be the Betway Premiership clash against Marumo Gallants at the Dr Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein on Wednesday.

The former SuperSport mentor will be looking to start his tenure as Babina Noko coach on a high note by registering a win in his first game in charge of the side.