Ntokozo Bhengu on securing their HWBSL status on debut season

The KwaZulu-Natal outfit finished 11th on the log, recording nine wins and seven draws from 30 matches to successfully avoid relegation.

Speaking to SABC Sport, Bhengu admitted that the campaign was challenging but praised his side for finding a way to survive in the country’s topflight.

“It was a bit tough, but we managed to find a way to survive in topflight football. We are very happy to have retained our status in the top league in the country.

“I believe the team did well, especially considering that we had a mix of experienced players and newcomers who were not used to midweek games and travelling,” said Bhengu.

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The 51-year-old mentor also revealed that a disrupted pre-season and changes within the technical team added to their challenges.

“We didn’t have a proper pre-season, and there were changes in the technical team. We came in during the middle of the season, but the coaches who were here before us did well.

“In this league, every season comes with changes - you lose some players and you gain some. We had many matriculants who went on to universities to further their studies,’’ added Bhengu.

Looking ahead to the 2026 season, Bhengu says the club aims to establish more structure and improve their home form.

“One of our key focus areas is winning our home games, which didn’t happen consistently last season. If we can improve on that, we will be fine,” he added.

Bhengu also confirmed that the club will be reinforcing the squad ahead of the new campaign.

“Yes, we are going to add new players. We are having trials to reinforce certain departments. The current combinations won’t be disturbed, but we want to add more options to give us flexibility. We have identified our deficiencies in certain areas,” he expressed.