Ronnie Gabriel faces high tides at Richards Bay after Milford mauling
Three points from six matches. That’s the number weighing on Ronnie Gabriel right now, and after Sunday’s 5-1 mauling at the hands of newly-promoted Milford FC, it’s starting to feel less like a rough patch and more like a countdown.
The KZN derby that changed everything
Richards Bay didn’t just lose to Milford — they were dismantled by a side playing its first-ever top-flight season, and did it down to ten men. Worse still, it’s the second KwaZulu-Natal derby defeat in a row, following a 2-1 slip against AmaZulu. For a club that opened the season showing genuine fight — battling back for a point against Chippa United, holding Kaizer Chiefs to a 2-2 draw — the collapse against Milford has undone all of that goodwill in ninety minutes.
Six games, no wins, and a club running out of patience
Two draws, four losses, three points. That’s the Natal Rich Boyz’s season so far, and it’s put them level on points with 15th-placed Siwelele FC — a club also mired in a winless run of their own. Reports suggest the club is already making quiet enquiries about who could replace Gabriel in the dugout, even though no final call has been made yet.
A former partnership now under threat
There’s a cruel irony to Saturday’s fixture. Gabriel’s next test comes against Sekhukhune United — coached by Papi Zothwane, his former colleague on the Richards Bay bench. Together, the pair guided the club to an 11th-place finish last season. Now, one wrong result against his old ally could be the moment Gabriel’s tenure ends.
The question isn’t just whether Richards Bay can win on Saturday — it’s whether they can do it before the club makes up its mind.
Can Gabriel turn it around against Sekhukhune, or is this the beginning of the end?
