Newly appointed Highbury FC head coach Clinton Larsen says he has no intention of dismantling what has already been built at the Gqeberha-based club, but wants to build on the foundation laid by his predecessors and help the team achieve its promotion ambitions.
Larsen was officially announced on Thursday following Highbury's mutual agreement to part ways with coach Vusumuzi Vilakazi on Tuesday.
The 55-year-old, who has previously coached Polokwane City, Golden Arrows, Chippa United, Magesi FC and Venda FC, takes charge with Highbury sitting ninth in the Motsepe Foundation Championship with 15 points.
The Yellow Nation are looking to recover from a 3-1 defeat away to NWU Mafikeng in their most recent league outing.
Larsen said he was excited and grateful for the opportunity, describing Highbury as a stable club that had made significant progress in its three years of existence.
"What excited me most about the opportunity is the quality of the players that the club has assembled," he said.
"I think there is a very good balance between youth and experience, and every coach is looking for that in their squad.
"I believe the team is ripe for promotion.
"Everything has been put in place, all measures have been put in place to achieve that, and I've come along to try to assist in making that happen."
Rather than arriving with the intention of changing everything, Larsen wants to build on the work done by Vilakazi and previous coach Kabelo Sibiya.
He acknowledged that a strong foundation had been laid and said he would introduce his own ideas gradually without unsettling the players.
"Very often coaches move to new clubs and try to dismantle and change everything, and that's not my intention.
"I do have my own ideas as a coach and I will try to implement those in a very subtle way," he said.
"You know, a new coach coming in can sometimes be a culture shock to the players and I don't want that to happen.
"So, like I said, I was impressed with the work that was done by the previous coach.
"Yes, the results may not have been forthcoming of late, but I think generally he has done a very good job and I want to try to improve on that."
Larsen said his immediate focus was on getting his tenure off to a winning start when Highbury host the University of Pretoria.
The Yellow Nation play Tuks on November 20 at the Madibaz Stadium (3.30pm).
