Bonuses ensure Free State Stars' PSL survival

A R10000 win bonus to each player is what sparked Free State Stars' survival in the Absa Premiership, club owner Mike Mokoena revealed yesterday.

"People are asking questions about our four successive victories," said Mokoena after Ea Lla Koto managed to retain their status with a 2-0 win over Chippa United in Bethlehem on Saturday.

"I didn't bribe anyone. It's simple, I told the players I would double their R5000 win bonus per match. Before that we had meetings, brought in motivational speakers and psychologists and nothing worked.

"As the situation got desperate, I thought we could probably afford to increase their bonuses. I'm happy to see that it worked."

Mokoena believes Stars underachieved this season, and he surprisingly admitted that sacking Steve Komphela in December 2013 and hiring little known Belgian coach Tom Saintfiet last July was the reason the club has had to fight for survival two years in a row: "I make mistakes and I am man enough to accept when I've muddled things up a bit," Mokoena explained.

"Steve is like a son to me and I am confident if I were to ask him to come back tomorrow he would. But we just couldn't afford him. A coach with his attributes does not come cheap. We got it all wrong with Saintfiet from the beginning. He arrived here and used some strange methods that this club has never come across, so we had to let him go."

Mokoena is already looking ahead. He did not even want to discuss breaking into the Top 8 bracket using the two remaining league matches against Bloemfontein Celtic and Black Aces this week.

"I think we need to hold on to our coaches a bit longer. Kinnah Phiri and Themba Sithole have done an amazing job keeping us up and I believe they deserve to stick around for the next few years.

"Yes, things change but I hope we will make good decisions," the Stars owner said.