PLAYER PERSPECTIVE: BY SHUAIB WALTERS Follow on Twitter
Our boys were well prepared for Pirates knowing they would come in guns blazing and create chances from the first whistle as they did in their last two games against Sundowns and Wits. The Bucs had dominated the first 10 to 15 minutes of both these games by pushing forward and creating chances. Unfortunately for them, they couldn’t bury any of those early chances and went on to run out of steam and suffered damaging losses.
With regards to our game I am still reeling from disappointment at the 2-2 final score, although in hindsight, looking at the two halves of the game a draw was probably a fair result. Having had and losing the lead in the 92nd minute of the game was the devastating part and I think as a team looking to compete with the best we should be able to secure leads like that and bring home the 3 points. I wasn’t happy with my own performance towards the end of the game either. On a more positive note, Saturday’s game turned out to be very entertaining for the supporters and viewers, with Cape Town Stadium being filled with a fantastic atmosphere throughout the match.
Pirates coach Jonevret receives temporary work permit
The Cape Town Stadium pitch wasn’t the only area of interest for Pirates fans. I’m sure everyone knows by now the new Bucs coach Kjell Jonevert has been announced. As a foreign coach my view is he doesn’t know local football exceptionally well and this could create opportunities for opponents to exploit. But on the flip side, many players in the Pirates squad will be happy as a new coach will mean starting positions in the team should be up for grabs.
I remember while I was playing for Maritzburg the changing of coaches gave players the hope of a fair chance for playing time which resulted in players performing better to prove themselves. There is, however, another side to that coin, as some players can have mixed emotions about a new coach and all the changes they may bring. Having a good professional relationship with a coach is very important for a player and will affect his performance and growth within a team. Therefore a new coach can either make or break a team regardless of how strong the players in the squad are.
Mamelodi Sundowns are the true champions of African football
In other coaching news Bafana Bafana are in the market for a new coach and if I were in charge of the appointment at Safa I would definitely put the following candidates into my shopping cart: Herve Renard and Chad Le Roy due to their extensive experience in coaching African countries. Herve Renard is my personal number one as he has won the AFCON championship twice, with Zambia and Cote 'd'Ivoire, and he would be the ideal coach if South Africa want to focus on winning a championship like AFCON.
Till next week!
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