Jeremy Brockie will make his debut for Maritzburg United against Chippa United on Friday.

Maritzburg coach Eric Tinkler confirmed that Brockie would make his maiden appearance against the Port Elizabeth side soon after the mentor was given a vote of confidence by club management despite still not winning a game this season.

Brockie was signed on loan from Mamelodi Sundowns on the last day of the transfer window but almost a month later still has not played for the club.

The international break and Maritzburg’s barren fixture schedule limited his opportunities during a period that saw the club play just once this month - a 2-1 loss to Brockie’s parent club‚ who did not allow him to play in last Saturday’s clash at Atteridgeville.

“He’ll definitely start on Friday‚ we know the qualities that Jeremy has‚” said Tinkler‚ whose team have scored only twice in five games this season and in a campaign where they are the shyest team on attack along with AmaZulu.

Maritzburg host Chippa United at the Harry Gwala Stadium on Friday in a meeting between two clubs still seeking to record their first victory of the season.

Tinkler says the arrival of 12 new players at Maritzburg this season‚ after they barely escaped relegation last season‚ must be considered a mitigating factor in their slow start this season.

“It’s a lot of new faces to bring in‚" Tinkler said.

"Four of those are foreigners who have never played in the PSL before.

“So if I start throwing them in all at once‚ it becomes very difficult.

"They still have to adapt to the pace of our game.

“You’ve even got players like Keegan Buchanan and Thami Sangweni who’ve been out for a long time.

"Adapting to the speed of our game and getting back into that is very difficult‚ so we’ve got to be careful in terms of how we introduce those players.

“I’m very happy with the squad I’ve got‚” Tinkler added.

“We should be a lot higher up the log but we just need that first win.”

Following the loss to Sundowns‚ Maritzburg chairman Farook Kadodia gave his backing to Tinkler.

“We all know how he galvanised the team towards the end of last season – how he helped us win the play-offs to escape relegation – and we have complete faith that he is the right man for the job.

“It can be unsettling for the players and for the coach when rumours start circulating in the media‚ and we would therefore like to reiterate our trust in Eric Tinkler.

“We feel as a football club that stability is a key component and that decisions cannot be taken with emotions running high on the back of a few unfavourable results.

“It’s still early in the season and although we realise the importance of getting points on the board‚ we are confident that results will start to fall into place in the coming weeks‚ and that we will move to a more comfortable position on the table‚” Kadodia said in a statement.