Steve Barker ready for changes as Stellenbosch head to CAF

The Winelands outfit suffered a 2-0 defeat away to Moroka Swallows in the DStv Premiership on Saturday and the coach lamented their lack of depth. 

Stellies will need numbers with more fixtures added to their calendar for the 2024/25 campaign, and Barker admits additions are necessary to the squad. 

"We don't have a single injury in the squad, so even without any injuries we could sort of feel [the strain], so obviously we are mindful and aware of that [congested schedule]," said Barker.

"Unfortunately, during the season we lost one or two players through sort-of ill-discipline, and at that stage of the season it was difficult to replace those type of players, so that took our numbers down a bit.

"And the [Diski Challenge] team have also been really pushing to win the league, so some of our players have maybe been more involved with them than we had anticipated and hoped for, but it's important for us to also build winning mentalities."

With the Stellies reserve team having clinched the Diski Challenge title over the weekend, it came at the expense of the senior team losing points in the topflight, making it bittersweet for Barker. 

"We've now got players in our first team currently that have won a league, and now we're going to have a new group of players that have won a league, so building that winning mentality at the club will hopefully one day allow us as a PSL team to be challenging to win," he added.

"But we are very mindful of [the need for squad depth] and we will address it, and ensure that we are able to compete competitively on all fronts."

READ: Volume of games Stellies’ undoing - Steve Barker