It appears that the soccer gods are smiling broadly with Sea Point Swifts (Hope FC) after they have been granted permission to move back to their Erica Park fortress in Belhar – and this spells ominous signs for their rivals in the title race.
Needless to say, the ABC Motsepe League debutant has been a revelation since their introduction to Safa Western Cape’s Second Division and has taken the league by storm.
So much so, that they have been tipped as one of the favourites to win stream A dubbed as the ‘stream of death’ due to the fact that they have been grouped with a number of former champion sides but have held their own with great aplomb.
Credit must go to their experienced mentor, Dylan Deane, and his equally competent technical team who has shown their capabilities to transform this newbie into a winning machine – and their perfect record at Erica Park speaks for itself.
Swifts only lost two matches away from Erica Park against the current log leader, Hout Bay United FC and Young Bafana – and is one of the reasons why they trail Hout Bay FC by two points heading into the business end of the season.
Swifts could find themselves in the driving seat should they win their game in hand (away) to Santos at the Thornton Sport Complex on Wednesday evening (19:30) – but will be easier said than done as the People’s Team along with Ubuntu FC also took points off them during a 0-0 draw in February and a 2-2 draw respectively.
But this was also largely because Deane and his troops were unsettled as they operated like nomads due to the fact they did not have a permanent home and had to make use of the NY49 astroturf in Nyanga which was not ideal and clearly affected their rhythm and it reflected in their results as well.
This was also underlined in their ‘home’ fixture against Young Bafana which was played in Strand due to the unavailability of a home ground, and unfortunately they came short. But credit to the debutants as they bounced back against Bafana to return the favour with a 1-0 win at the same venue.
Well, it appears that their nomadic existence is a thing of the past with Erica Park venue once available which should bring a sense of stability and calmness for what is to come.
Looking ahead Deane knows all too well that Santos will be a difficult nut to crack as they are well structured. Not to mention that Santos’ tails are up following a 4-1 drubbing of a former champion in FN Rangers at Royal Road just before the Easter break.
Deane would have probably done his homework and that is to highlight to his players about Santos’ route one attacking ability with aerial balls being launched in the penalty area which could make life uncomfortable for the visitors – and this is an aspect Swifts will have to contend with and contain in order to be victorious.
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