PSL sides moving at a good clip
THREE OF the four South African representatives in continental football will return from their overseas trips and head straight to the Nedbank Cup tomorrow to test their squad’s depth and strength.
Bidvest Wits, Platinum Stars and SuperSport United all lost by slender margins which should give them confidence going into the second leg of their continental duties at home this weekend. But they will put that at the back of their minds.
Their main focus now, is advancing to the last 16 of the Nedbank Cup.
Platinum Stars v AmaZulu @ Moruleng Stadium
Dikwena are a more confident team than they were a month ago. Back then, they were just three points away from the relegation zone, with the rub of the green against them. But three successive wins have put them in the top eight – a comfortable position to focus on the CAF Confederation Cup. They can overcome their 1-0 loss to Ugandan side Vipers in the first leg. That confidence will be evident against first division side AmaZulu in Moruleng. Stars’ advantage is that they have a relatively young team, which means that they can recover from their trip and game in Uganda, compete against Usuthu and still have enough for the return leg on Saturday.
Royal Eagles v SuperSport United @ Harry Gwala Stadium
Matsatsantsa a Pitori had a marathon in travelling. They left Shendi for Khartoum, flew from there to Qatar and then arrived in Johannesburg before flying to Durban, from where they will drive to Pietermaritzburg. But they also fielded a second string team in the 3-2 loss to Al Ahly Shendi of Sudan. That means they have enough firepower – being fit and rested – to help them overcome first division side Royal Eagles, who are a tricky side. That club is driven by the desire to, not only eliminate a Premier Division side, but also the reigning Nedbank Cup champions. “There are two options of juggling these commitments – you either rotate the squad or prioritise – neither of which I am a fan of,” SuperSport’s coach Stuart Baxter said. “People don’t get the understanding when you keep changing their partnerships. I don’t like it but you have to do it because of the schedule that we have. I don’t like saying we prioritise this over the other, but you also have to look at the best possible chance of silverware and focus on that.”
Cape Town All Stars v Bidvest Wits @ Athlone Stadium
Gavin Hunt would probably laugh at SuperSport for saying that their travelling has been hectic. The Clever Boys were in East London on Tuesday last week, flew to Cairo to face Al Ahly on Saturday and returned to Johannesburg, only to fly to Cape Town. After this game, they host the Red Devils in Milpark on Sunday. These trips have tested the club’s depth and so far they have come out of it unscathed, especially in terms of injuries, even though they dropped points against Chippa United. Their MTN8 success has eased the demands of winning a knockout competition this year but it doesn’t mean that they don’t want to do well in this cup. Hunt has a good record in this competition. He has reached the final in three of the last five editions, winning it with Matsatsantsa in 2012.