Former Chippa United coach Roger Sikhakhane has passed on

Former Chippa United coach Roger Sikhakhane has passed on.

However, while details of his demise remain uncertain, news of his death was confirmed by Royal Eagles on Saturday morning, where he was last on their books before being put on sick leave.

“Yes, it is true that Sikhakhane has passed away. We received the message from the family this morning. He was at the hospital at Empangeni. He was still part of Eagles. We were paying him every month,” the club's general manager James Dlamini told IOL.

Meanwhile, the 42-year-old was recently reported to have been replaced by Serbian Zlatko Krmpotic as head coach of the KwaZulu-Natal outfit.

Sikhakhane had previously won two National First Division (NFD) titles in a career which has seen him coach the likes of Thanda Royal Zulu, Chippa United and in most recent times Royal Eagles.

Royal Eagles would have hoped that the tactician would have helped them secure promotion to the top flight but after suffering from an illness, assistant coaches Kagisho Dikgacoi and Sazi Ngubani were entrusted with holding the reigns.  

Nonetheless, while the former NFD winning coach was well travelled, he will largely be remembered for his work with Chippa where he guided them to the Premier Soccer League (PSL) in the 2011/12 season.

Goal would like to offer our deepest hearted condolences to the family and friends of Sikhakhane.