OWEN Da Gama has taken over the coaching as the new head coach of TS Galaxy FC and he is looking to bring a new lease of life to the Rockets.
ODG as he is affectionately known to football lovers started his new job yesterday.
He is taking over the coaching reins on a three year contract.
TS Galaxy FC website sat down with Owen Da Gama (ODG) to discuss his new job.
TSG: How was your first training session?
ODG: The training session was very enlightening. I spoke to the players. I first had a meeting with the technical team and had a meeting with the players. Apart from the players that I know from Highlands Park, the quality of the players that is there available, it is just unbelievable. There’s a lot of talent at this club. It is just unbelievable. What I know is that we are going forward as a team. There’s no Highlands Park players or TS Galaxy players. We are a one team that is TS Galaxy. We are going in to this challenge as a unity. We are going in to this challenge as family and as one. That is the message that we laid to the players. I think that is going to bring a lot of stability within the team and a lot of love within the team.
TSG: What is going to be key in turning things around?
ODG: The most important thing, it is to get the foundation right. Let us build a solid foundation here. I don’t believe that TS Galaxy is in the position to compete with anybody. TS Galaxy has got to compete with itself. We know the vision of the chairman. We know what this team can achieve. For now, it is all about building a solid foundation. We are looking for a big improvement. There’s no wonder stick that says we are going to beat everyone. By laying those foundation of improvement, that’s when we are going to achieve what we will achieve. We want to add value in the Premier Soccer League. TS Galaxy wants to add value in the biggest league in Africa.
TSG: What has attracted you to TS Galaxy?
ODG: When I looked at the ambition of Tim Sukazi and his management team, I was amazed. The team won the Nedbank Cup while in GladAfrica Championship. That told me about the ambition of the club. You look at their social media platform, it is unbelievable. You look a the dedication from the entire management, this club is very professional. That’s what caught my attention. I want to be part of something like this. My relationship with team goes from way back. For me, it is homecoming because we’ve built this relationship of mutual trust and respect. I think that is very important.
TSG: Where are you going to start?
ODG: I think, it is mindset. We got to turn that mindset. We have to get players performing at their best and to be confident. Confidence comes with hard work. I think, the confidence is a little bit low. It is something that we got to get right. I’ve got a very good feedback from the technical team. I’m not just coming from outside with my theories. It is well documented that I’ve got an information from the technical team. As a collective, we got to plan as to how we move forward to try and improve as a team.
TSG: This coming weekend we are playing at home once again, how key is winning our home games?
ODG: You got to win your home games. You got to make sure that you win as much game as possible at home. You must first get it right at home and try and improve away but it is a process and hopefully, we will get it right. It is all about hard work now. Talk is easy but we got to put in to practice.
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