‘BIRDS’ FROLIC, GAMBOL AHEAD OF ‘BIG’ DERBY

(At Prince of Wales)

MBABANE – No player needs motivation. Everyone wants to play.
That is the derby for you. Its fever has gripped red and white glamour giants Mbabane Swallows players.

Found going through their paces at the Prince of Wales yesterday afternoon, the Swallows players sweat it out without complaining. Missing in action was head coach Mandla ‘Stofu’ Dlamini, who was reportedly held up at his place of employment, the Umbutfo Swaziland Defence Force (USDF).
Trainer, Siyabonga Bhembe took the players through a gruelling two-hour physical workout.

The mood:

Ahead of the derby, the mood is always a groovy one and at Swallows, the team spirit is high. Every player is upbeat. Every player wants to play a role in the game. With the usual suspects like Mandla Palma, Wonder ‘Samba Jive’ Nhleko and Talent Maphosa at their element, it was laughter throughout the sessions. Another joker in the pack, speedy striker Sandile Hlatjwako watched from the sidelines, as he was sidelined by hamstring.

The training:

Being a Wednesday, it was no surprise seeing Bhembe lead the players through a vigorous workout that lasted for about two hours.
After a thorough warm-up session that lasted for about 15 minutes, the players were then required to do short diagonal sprints.
It took the stuffing out of them as they were visibly exhausted within half an hour. Nevertheless, they soldiered on.

Missing in action:

Dreadlocked striker Mfanafuthi ‘Taribo’ Bhembe, midfielder Lwazi ‘Zidane’ Maziya and overlapping right back Xolani ‘Tyson’ Magagula were conspicuous with their absence.
Another notable absentee was lanky attacker Felix ‘Fela’ Badenhorst currently recovering from a minor strain.

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