NKARENG MATSHE | Middendorp fleeing Birds nest on cue with their poor ethics

The abrupt way Ernst Middendorp dumped Swallows for a lower-division German club came as a shock to many, except perhaps to those used to the regular shenanigans in the Birds’ nest.

To Swallows, Middendorp’s sudden departure was another episode to add to their well-publicised epilogues on blatant unprofessionalism.

Middendorp was announced as new head coach of SV Meppen, who campaign in the third division in his native country Germany, on Tuesday evening, unexpectedly ditching the Birds as the DStv Premiership’s relegation race enters a critical phase.

The ex-Kaizer Chiefs man lasted just 11 matches at Dobsonville Stadium but even for a man of his nomadic standards, it must have been such a tumultuous tenure marred by ineptitude he’s never come across in his four-decade coaching career, which has seen him take charge of over 20 teams.

This is a huge pity because there was a time, veterans have told us, when Swallows were a model of professionalism. They were among the first teams to introduce supporters club cards, for instance.

But over the years, they allowed the standards which won them a place among SA’s top sides in the 1980s to deteriorate, hence their demise, with relegation in 2014/15. A group led by Panyaza Lesufi, a staunch Swallows supporter who is now Gauteng premier, helped get the Birds to their “rightful” place by acquiring a status in the lower division, before they won promotion in 2019/20.

What began as a hopeful revival for one of SA’s most famous clubs has now turned into an eyesore, as Swallows have become synonymous with chaos.

But for the first season when they held their own to finish in impressive sixth place, the Birds have battled relegation in the past two years, surviving only via the playoffs backdoor last year.

Poor form on the field, we are told, has mostly to do with off-field anarchy under a bumbling management who allowed the PSL to bully them from signing a sponsor two years ago. Reports emerged last year of Swallows struggling to pay salaries, with players embarking on a strike.

At the beginning of this season, Lebohang Mokoena, who had been their mainstay in their revival from their NFD days to captaining them as they survived the playoffs, found out on the day the team were supposed to return to training that his services were no longer required. No wonder Middendorp’s immediate departure didn’t raise eyebrows within the Birds’ ranks. Terminating contracts on a whim seems a pastime.

The club incurred a Fifa transfer ban for failing to pay Serbian players Obren Cuckovic and Vladimir Mandic, which was only lifted at the start of this year. Even after such a dreadful experience, which deprived them of the ability to bolster their thin squad, it seems they didn’t really learn much from that saga. I’m told one of the players they signed in January had to personally go to his own doctor to undergo a medical, because the club couldn’t arrange one.

They probably still have dozens of unpaid former and current players eager to take them to the PSL’s dispute resolution chamber.

Having survived relegation last time, one wonders if they would this time, with a tough run-in that includes clashes against Mamelodi Sundowns, Stellenbosch, AmaZulu and Maritzburg United. You can’t blame Middendorp for fleeing the troubled nest.

Should they somehow survive, Swallows must invest in proper management to get them to previous heights. Self-obsessed “twelebs” – a phrase used to describe those who spend more time perfecting their Twitter popularity rather than their actual jobs – can only take you so far. It can’t be business as usual when a coach – even with Middendorp’s mercenary tendencies – leaves abruptly.