Leemisa Thuseho

LCS coach Mpitsa Marai says his side is one of the teams that may benefit from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) break since its players have an opportunity to fully recover from injuries of various magnitude.

LCS is one of the Econet Premier League teams that were struggling with injuries before the break and Marai concedes they suffered immensely.

Marai said his team has been haunted by injuries and that has been worsened by their small pool of players.

All this, he said, limited their chances of winning trophies while competing against the likes of Matlama, Bantu and Lioli who have larger pools of players.

“Due to financial challenges, we struggle to get quality players and depend on free agents and that also compromises quality,” Marai said.

According to Marai, before the break some of the players were just two weeks from recovery while some were meant to be side-lined for longer. However, the break has afforded most to recover fully.

“Before the break, Lehlohonolo Lenka, Leboneng Maqecho, and Setho Moshoeshoe were only a few weeks from recovery,” Marai said.

James Mothotjela and Makara Ntaitsane, Keketso Snyders and Mojalefa Ramabusa are among the players who will use the break to recover from injuries.

He said they gave all the players training programmes so that they maintain fitness.

However, Marai said even after their players recover, they would need a few weeks before they can start playing.

“Even though some of the players would have recovered, teams will still need time to prepare their teams before the games start to regain their fitness,” Marai said.

According to Marai, forcing the players to play earlier may lead to injuries.

LCS is currently third in the table with 33 points, just a point behind second-placed Matlama. Marai said their target is to end the season in second place behind runaway leaders, Bantu who currently have 50 points.