Simphiwe Mafene celebrates strong finish in 2026 HWBSL campaign

The Baby Wolves finished the campaign with 31 points from 14 matches and will now turn their attention to the playoffs, where they are set to face defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns.

Speaking to SABC Sport, Mafene says he is overwhelmed with joy after seeing his team finish at the summit despite a slow start to their 2026 campaign.

"I am overwhelmed, it is my first time winning a stream. I think the impact that we brought in so far, I think it's a good challenge. Right now I'm excited about the R2 million against Sundowns, I'm very much excited and checking again with how we've been coming up along winning 2-1 and 1-0,” Mafene said. 

“I think it's one thing that we've noticed that we can't be comfortable. So, we needed to craft even more than that."

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Mafene says finding the right balance between youth and experience has played a key role in the team’s success during their debut campaign in the Hollywoodbets Super League. He adds that the senior players have helped guide the younger members of the squad, particularly in maintaining discipline and consistency.

"A bit of mixture with the seniors and the youth, I think we struck a little bit of a balance when you see a lot of senior players come on board and in terms of discipline we're looking up to them to ensure that they groom these other ones that are still coming,” the coach added.

“Even Keisha [Hendricks] you saw that she adapted very well especially towards the second round. It's because now we had to sit down a lot with the analysis and make sure that each and every player understands their duties and responsibilities in the field of play."