Former Orlando Pirates captain Lucky Lekgwathi has expressed his views regarding Innocent Maela's limited playing time, despite his role as the team's captain.
Maela assumed the captaincy from Happy Jele, who departed the club following the conclusion of the 2021/22 season.
Nevertheless, the captain's armband has, at times, been donned by Tapelo Xoki, Nkosinathi Sibisi, and Olisa Ndah during instances when Maela has been sidelined.
In many matches, he has found himself starting on the bench and entering the game as a substitute in the second half.
Lekgwathi emphasised that holding the captaincy does not guarantee a starting position within the team and praised Maela for his understanding of this reality.
LUCKY LEKGWATHI ON MAELA’S LIMITED PLAYING TIME DESPITE CAPTAINCY
“Let me tell you, as a captain, you don’t own a position. Not to say that you are the captain, then you must play regularly,” Lekgwathi told FARPost.
“If there is competition within the team and you don’t deserve to play, then it’s obvious. But I believe he is a good player and he must wait for his chance to come. Whenever he comes to the team, he always does well.
“I’m so happy about everything he does for the team and the way he conducts himself because if it was other people not playing regularly they would then get angry.
“The boy is always happy and whenever he gets the chance to play, he always does a great job. And other players who get to be captains, also delivered, like last week, the captain was Olisa Ndah and he has done a marvellous job. He even scored a goal and that must be a good motivation for Maela and others.
“You know one thing I like about Orlando Pirates, they have got a healthy competition in each and every position. Credit should go to the coaches as they know how to balance the team and to give all the players a chance to play.”
