The Rise of Anish Singh Thakur: The Boomingbulls Story
Anish Singh Thakur knows the market’s chaos well, he’s lived through the FOMO, the crashes, and the viral hype.
Stellies are into the second week of their training ahead of the 2025/26 season, and have welcomed fresh arrivals in the form of Motsepe Foundation Championship golden boot winner, Muzomuhle Khanyi, and SA U-20 international Siviwe Nkwali in camp.
Barker says they’ve made a good impression in the few days at the club.
"The mood in the camp has been really good, and it's been nice to welcome some of our new signings to the club. Khanyi and Nkwali have settled into this new environment really well," said an upbeat Barker.
They’ve also promoted a few players from their reserve team ahead of the new season with Faiz Abrahams, Vuyolwethu Andrieas, Simthandile Sishi, and Dejean Ah Shene all set to get a taste of first-team football.
Barker says there’s synergy between them and the DDC team, which helps with the transition.
"Players moving from our DDC side to the senior side is always a rather smooth process. We train with the reserve side quite often so the three players that were promoted know exactly what's expected of them."
They join Tylon Smith, who caught Barker’s eye in the middle of last season.
Smith went on to have the tournament of his life in helping Amajita win the U-20 AFCON recently, where he was named Player of the Tournament.
Barker says it was important for the players to get an extended break following a taxing 2024/25 season, where they played a large number of matches, including going all the way to the CAF Confederation Cup semi-finals.
They finished in third place again in the league, meaning they will also do a lot of travelling across the country and the continent in the new campaign.
Issued on SABC Sport by Benjamin Leshoro | https://www.sabcsport.com/soccer/news/steve-barker-happy-with-new-stellenbosch-arrivals-as-pre-season-intensifies
