Behind the Rivalry: Strategies of the ‘Class of 2012’ Coaches in the Nedbank Cup Final
Durban City’s assistant coach Ashraf Hendricks will draw upon his experience from 14 years ago when his team faces TS Galaxy in the Nedbank Cup final this Saturday.
Hendricks was part of the Moroka Swallows team that unexpectedly secured the MTN8 title during the 2012/13 season under coach Zeca Marques, defeating SuperSport United in the final at Orlando Amstel Arena.
The Swallows encountered a challenging path to the final, starting with a 2-0 home victory against AmaZulu in the quarter-finals. They earned home advantage after finishing second the previous season under Gordon Igesund, just missing the league title to Orlando Pirates on the final day.
The semi-finals saw them up against Mamelodi Sundowns in a two-legged duel. In the first leg in Pretoria, Swallows displayed resilience in a dramatic 3-3 draw, with Hendricks scoring alongside Bennett Chenene and Felix Obada.
In the second leg, holding an advantage with away goals, Swallows aimed for a clear victory. Lerato Chabangu scored twice, with Obada adding another to achieve a 3-2 win that night and progress with a 6-5 aggregate scoreline.
They overcame a strong Sundowns team that had recently triumphed, defeating Kaizer Chiefs 4-0 in the quarter-finals—Stuart Baxter’s first match in charge.
In the final held in Soweto, Swallows fell behind early due to a goal from Franklyn Cale in the fourth minute. However, they responded in the 18th minute with a spectacular equalizer from Georgian international Giorgi Nergadze.
Chenene secured the win in the 85th minute with a clever flick over goalkeeper Rowan Fernandez—now part of Durban City’s coaching staff as the goalkeeping coach—to claim the trophy.
At that time, Greg Etafia was Swallows’ goalkeeper, but he will now be on the opposing side as TS Galaxy’s goalkeeper coach.
The three individuals from that 2012 Swallows squad (Hendricks, Fernandez, and Etafia) will all be present on the sidelines this Saturday, albeit representing two different teams.
Reflecting on his past, Hendricks emphasized that cup finals are ultimately decided by the level of determination shown that day.
“Cup matches hinge on who truly wants it more on the day,” Hendricks remarked.
“Ultimately, that’s the understanding we need to instill in these players.”
Durban City is considered the favorite, bolstered by their league standing and victories against Galaxy in two league matches this season. Yet, Hendricks played down the importance of those results.
“Approaching the game with the belief that we have defeated them before and that it will be easy isn’t the correct mindset,” he noted.
“We will treat this as a cup final—90 minutes, not 120—and focus on securing the win that day.”
