GAVIN Hunt is already thinking past Bidvest Wits' hard-earned 2-1 Absa Premiership win over Maritzburg United in Pietermaritzburg on Tuesday evening.
Overhauling Kaizer Chiefs and keeping Mamelodi Sundowns in his sights is not Hunt's biggest concern, but how Wits' pocket will be burnt by their CAF Confederation Cup safari.
It begins this weekend against Royal Leopards from Swaziland, and Hunt is counting the financial cost of conquering Africa before their journey has even begun.
Having fought continental battles with SuperSport United, Hunt is relishing the footballing experience and the lessons that come with it.
"I take CAF competitions seriously from a footballing perspective, but I don't take them seriously from a financial perspective because it is ridiculous.
"The Angolan referee has cancelled and we had already paid R65000 for the tickets. We have a Madagascan referee and we had to pay R85000, so that's more than R150000 on referees," Hunt said.
"It is very straining because it costs us around R500000 per round. Forget about all the other strain because I enjoy that. I like the jungle and I enjoy going to Africa. I like the fight and it is good for players and the club but from a finance perspective, it is punishing. If we go through, we will be travelling to Angola and it will cost us between R600000 and R700000 a tie.
"We are not like the Egyptian teams who get help from the government and the army. We do get a small subsidy but it does not cover costs," he said.
Despite fighting back from a goal down, Hunt was characteristically unhappy with certain aspects of his team's performance on Tuesday. Finishing was one of them as the coach lamented his team's inability to convert chances.
"We need to score more goals, obviously, and we want to have a better success rate in the opportunities created," Hunt added.
'Caf safari will be too costly'
GAVIN Hunt is already thinking past Bidvest Wits' hard-earned 2-1 Absa Premiership win over Maritzburg United in Pietermaritzburg on Tuesday evening.
Overhauling Kaizer Chiefs and keeping Mamelodi Sundowns in his sights is not Hunt's biggest concern, but how Wits' pocket will be burnt by their CAF Confederation Cup safari.
It begins this weekend against Royal Leopards from Swaziland, and Hunt is counting the financial cost of conquering Africa before their journey has even begun.
Having fought continental battles with SuperSport United, Hunt is relishing the footballing experience and the lessons that come with it.
"I take CAF competitions seriously from a footballing perspective, but I don't take them seriously from a financial perspective because it is ridiculous.
"The Angolan referee has cancelled and we had already paid R65000 for the tickets. We have a Madagascan referee and we had to pay R85000, so that's more than R150000 on referees," Hunt said.
"It is very straining because it costs us around R500000 per round. Forget about all the other strain because I enjoy that. I like the jungle and I enjoy going to Africa. I like the fight and it is good for players and the club but from a finance perspective, it is punishing. If we go through, we will be travelling to Angola and it will cost us between R600000 and R700000 a tie.
"We are not like the Egyptian teams who get help from the government and the army. We do get a small subsidy but it does not cover costs," he said.
Despite fighting back from a goal down, Hunt was characteristically unhappy with certain aspects of his team's performance on Tuesday. Finishing was one of them as the coach lamented his team's inability to convert chances.
"We need to score more goals, obviously, and we want to have a better success rate in the opportunities created," Hunt added.
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