_Chairman Le John faces angry fans head-on, vows January spending spree to save season_
By Katleho Chitja
BLOEMFONTEIN – Siwelele FC is NOT for sale.That was the thunderous assurance from Chairman Calvin Le John as he went straight to the grassroots, facing his frustrated supporters eyeball-to-eyeball at Paradise Hall in Bochabela on Sunday morning.
Hours before Siwelele clashed with Polokwane City FC at Toyota Stadium, Le John walked into the lion’s den – the Supporters General Meeting – to kill the rumours that have been poisoning the club.
Rumours that the Free State’s only PSL team is collapsing. That it will be sold next season. That the dressing room is in chaos after coach Lehlohonolo Seema was suspended following a horror start to the Betway Premiership campaign.
Le John did not dodge.
“This team is not going up for sale,” he told the packed hall, as interim coach Godfrey Mosoetsa prepares to hold the fort.
And to fix the results? Cash. Signings. Muscle.
The chairman revealed Siwelele will beef up the squad in the January transfer window and forge partnerships with other top clubs to bring in elite talent.It was tense. It was raw. But it worked.
“We are satisfied with what we got from Chairman in the meeting. We invited him over to come talk to us as supporters during these difficult times and we are happy that he indeed came to address supporters of Siwelele FC,” said Mabena Pule, National Chairperson of the Supporters Committee, in an exclusive interview with The Guard.Pule said supporters finally got clarity on the burning issues and the meeting was long overdue.
“We as supporters, we have not lost hope for the team including Coach Godfrey who is still the interim at this stage. We understand that as a new team, there is still a long way to go and as supporters we will always be behind the team,” he said.
The meeting ended the only way it could in Bloemfontein – with the famous gwijo songs shaking the walls of Paradise Hall, as fans marched to Toyota Stadium still believing.
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