Swallows FC respond to Truter sacking rumours as coach goes on leave

Swallows FC have confirmed coach Brandon Truter has gone on leave, but the club has assured he has not been fired and will "definitely" be coming back.

The latest development comes a day after some reports suggested the coach will be placed on "special leave".

The Soweto side has not won in its last three Premier Soccer League games, managing a 0-0 draw against AmaZulu, losing 1-0 to Orlando Pirates, before last Sunday's 3-0 defeat by SuperSport United.

In between, they also drew 0-0 against Cape Town City in an MTN8 semi-final, first leg match, bringing their run to four winless games.

"He is on leave, but he's not fired," Swallows chairman David Mogashoa told Sowetan Live while declining to clarify if the leave was personal or club-induced.

"No, he's on leave and that's it. We are not going to release a statement because the coach is coming back. It's not like he's gone forever. The coach is definitely coming back."

In the absence of Truter, assistant coach Simo Dladla will be in charge of first-team responsibilities.

While Mogashao declined to mention the nature of Truter's leave, club chief executive officer Sipho Xulu also confirmed the coach is on leave for "personal reasons".

"The coach is on leave," Xulu told KickOff.

"But as you know there's this thing called employer/employee confidentiality. So the coach is on leave due to personal reasons. An agreement has been reached between him and the club for him to be on leave because of those reasons.

"So we have to respect the agreement between the club and the employee. What I know is that he will be on leave for a short period then will return, it's not like he has been placed on indefinite leave, no.

"It's a normal situation whereby a coach is absent due to some personal reasons, his assistant will take over on an interim basis. So assistant Simo Dladla is taking over in the interim, that's up until the head coach returns."

Xulu expressed concern about Swallows' current run of form in what could suggest they are not happy with Truter.

"As for the club's performance I can say it's not good my friend, but I'm not talking about the coach's performance, I'm talking about the club's performance, it's not good," said Xulu.

"That is being addressed separately from the coach's current position and his personal issues. So let's draw a line there. Unfortunately, because of the timing of all this, it has now caused all sorts of speculation. Unfortunately, we can't control people speculating."

The Birds host Cape Town City in their next league match on Friday.