WHEN Moroka Swallows were drawn to face Bidvest Wits in the opening round of the Telkom Knockout last week, it seemed a winnable game for Zeca Marques, pictured.

But after yet another league defeat, facing a team considered to be among the title challengers this Friday when the morale is so low seems a tough ask for the Birds.

Marques, the Swallows coach, who still seems to have the job security despite recent poor results, had said his men were unlucky to lose at home against Chippa United two weeks ago. The early minutes of their away encounter against Free State Stars at Bethlehem's Goble Park at the weekend suggested the coach might have finally caught a break.

"But we let it slip," said Marques yesterday when reflecting on the catastrophic outcome from their trip to Ea Lla Koto.

The Dube Birds led 2-0 at halftime, but according to the coach, "lost concentration" led to the team suffering a 3-2 defeat.

The coach was relaxed when asked if his job was safe, having recently received the backing of chairman Leon Prins.

"Here's a fact: we have never had a full complement of players since our first three games of the season [two wins and one loss]. When we face Wits we will again be without Larry Cohen, which means our defence will be forced to change.

"We face Wits on Friday, a team that is determined to go all the way in this tournament, and that makes things even harder," Marques explained.