Bernard Parker backs TS Galaxy to improve after slow Betway Premiership start

TS Galaxy coach Bernard Parker says his side are on the right track despite winning only one of their opening five Betway Premiership matches.

The Rockets have collected six points, with one victory, three draws and one defeat from their first five games of the season.

Their latest result was a goalless draw against Sekhukhune United at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium on Saturday. However, Parker believes TS Galaxy have produced enough encouraging signs during the opening weeks of the campaign and is not worried by their record.

“I wouldn’t think it’s a slow start. Looking at all the teams and us pound for pound, I think we got a lot of positives out of the five games; we only lost once,” Parker told the media after the match.

“We won once and drew three, so we are on the right track, and also, we are growing game by game. The last match we won was tough, and I believe we could have won this one.

“But it is only for us to build. It’s not how you start; it’s how well you do to improve.”

Parker is in his first full season in charge after taking over towards the end of last season. He said the club’s management, including chairman Tim Sukazi, had continued to support him as he worked to develop the team.

“I speak with the management as well as the chairman [Tim Sukazi] every day in terms of the day-to-day running and performance of the team. We also share ideas a lot, and of course at the end of the day we want the players to respond well, and they are responding well,” he said.

“There is a lot of excitement, and there is room for improvement.”

The draw extended a run of three matches without a win for Sekhukhune United, but interim coach Papi Zothwane said the clean sheet and overall commitment of his players provided reasons for optimism.

“I think we did well, considering that we played three games without a win. It builds our confidence going forward. We kept a clean sheet, and obviously the integration from our three games until now, the way we want the team to play, will take time,” he said.

Zothwane added that the players were beginning to understand the approach expected of them, although he acknowledged there were still parts of their performance that needed attention.

“But at least the players are aware of how we want to play. In terms of performance, there are positives to take and areas for improvement that we can work on, such as playing with high intensity from start to finish.

“Those are the things that we can take as lessons going into the next game, but overall, the commitment was there, and we are happy not to have conceded a goal.”