Mohafe says Marumo Gallants sacking came as a surprise

Former Marumo Gallants head coach Phuti Mohafe says he was taken aback by the decision to dismiss him after only five Betway Premiership matches.

Mohafe, 52, joined Bahlabane Ba Ntwa in June 2026 after three successful seasons with Polokwane City. But he and assistant coach Musa Bilankulu were dismissed last week, with Gallants struggling for results and sitting in the relegation zone.

The pair oversaw two draws and three defeats during their brief spell in charge. Mohafe said he had not expected to lose his job, particularly given the timing of the decision and what he believed was progress within the squad.

“I don’t know how to put it, but I can say it was a hectic week for me,” Mohafe told iDiski Times journalist Lethabo Kganyago in edition 273.

“And with whatever that has transpired last week, I wasn’t that… How can I say this? I didn’t expect that news because of the timing of the season and the matches that we played.

“But I couldn’t complain more because I couldn’t control what the board came up with in terms of the decision they made.”

Mohafe said the club’s management had encouraged him during his short tenure and had given him the impression that they were satisfied with the team’s development.

He also felt the players were beginning to understand his approach and that the side was building momentum before his departure.

“I can say there were words of courage and words of support, but the moment that happened, you could see that this wasn’t planned,” he added.

“In fact, I can say based on the performance of the team, I couldn’t see it coming because, yes, we didn’t play that well on the first, the second, and the third match, but the team started to pick up on the third match.”

Gallants’ third match came against Mamelodi Sundowns, when Mohafe acknowledged that his tactics did not suit the team’s style of play. He believed, however, that the following fixture showed clearer signs of improvement.

“But going forward on the fourth match, that is where you could see a lot of positives in what we have been implementing into the team, and the integration was starting to show because you could see how Marumo used to play and how the coach wants to play,” he said.

Mohafe pointed to a combination of quicker transitions and improved possession as evidence that his methods were taking effect. Gallants scored twice in each of two matches, giving them four goals across that period.

“It was a mixture of a good transition play and a mixture of good ball rotation possession play,” he said.

“So those things, they helped us a lot because we even scored two goals for the first time in a match, and we also scored two goals in another match.

“So, scoring four goals in two matches, that was a lot of improvement from the club and the performance itself, in how the players were playing on the day. That shows that there is a lot of improvement.”