Kerr insists he wasn't desperate for 3rd Marumo stint

New Marumo Gallants coach Dylan Kerr has emphasised he wasn't desperate to re-join the club, though he had been without a job since he left the very club at the end of the 2022/23 term after they were relegated.

“I think I've turned down six jobs in the past year to come back to East Africa, West Africa... [there was] one North African team and also one in Asia [that he turned down]. It wasn't desperation to get a job because the [Marumo] chairman [Abram Sello] always asks me if I'd come back...we spoke often,'' Kerr said, who's never coached anywhere since leaving Bahlabane Ba Ntwa at the end of the 2022/23 season.

“Yes, I was out of work but I wasn't looking to come back and I never called the chairman and said 'chairman I want to come back'. It was the chairman's decision and it was all done in 48 hours.”

Marumo are back in the Premiership courtesy of purchasing the status of Moroka Swallows. Kerr was unveiled as the new coach when Sello outlined the club's plans, that include relocating to Bloemfontein, at a media conference in Sandton on Tuesday.

It will be Kerr's third stint at Bahlabane Ba Ntwa. The Englishman's last spell was somewhat dramatic as he struggled to secure a work permit until he left the club after they were relegated to the second tier in a season where they had an incredible run in the CAF Confederation Cup, losing to Tanzanian side Young Africans in the semifinals. 

Marumo players boycotted training for several days towards the end of the 2022/23 season, demanding the club to pay them owed bonuses. Kerr gave a sense he still harbours a grudge against those players, suggesting that somewhat played a role in the side's eventual relegation.

“I just can't believe what happened last time [referring to the players' protest over unpaid bonuses], so it kind of killed what I am about in football. I felt let down by the players and I still do,'' the Marumo coach said.