Speaking to journalists on Friday evening, Rollers’ head coach, Mogomotsi ‘Teenage’ Mpote said the pair was excluded due to niggling injuries and that their status at the club will be reviewed in the mid-season, during the January transfer window. “I am 100% satisfied with the players (we have). I do not remember releasing any key players but players who have been graded under medical problems are Rakhale and Skhwama. They are de-registered, meaning we will assess them and see if they will have recovered and ready by next January so that we can bring them under the belt. We are finished (in the market) and we are happy with the boys we have. We are very ready to go to the ground, you will see,” said Mpote.
He was speaking following a 1-0 loss to old rivals, Mochudi Centre Chiefs in a pre-season match played at the Royal Aria Stadium on Friday evening. It will be interesting to see whether the duo will return to the Rollers fold as the club has reached its foreign quota. Rollers brought in South African, Onkemetse Makhura, Tapiwa Nyamanjiva from Zimbabwe, Namibian forward, Ambrosius Amseb, Djo Ntambwe and Dina Diwanga from DRC in the just ended transfer window. The five, with the inclusion of Namibian midfielder, Marcell Papama, make five foreign players in the Rollers’ squad hitting the set foreign quota limit in the local league as Nyamanjiva is said to have been registered as a local after almost decade in the country.
On Friday Popa had Nyamanjiva, alongside Botshelo Mangena, Ntambwe and Lemogang Maswena as new faces on their starting line-up while Congolese, Dina Diwanga was given a run in the second half in place of Lemogang Maswena. Popa went down by a solitary goal as Chiefs’ new boy, Pako Gaofose, converted from the spot on the 25th minute. Rollers will begin their FNB Premiership campaign against cross town rivals, Gaborone United, on Friday evening at the National Stadium.
