Tornado to pull out all stops for NFD

Coach not fazed by demanding playoff schedule

AS THE National First Division playoff fixtures were drawn at Safa House yesterday afternoon, Tornado coach Tshepo Motsoeneng said nothing would stand in their way in their push to gain promotion next month in Polokwane.

Tornado has been drawn into group A alongside ball-playing Buya Msutu and The Dolphins, while Free State, Steenberg United and Umvoti are in group B.

Maccabi, Northern Cape and Mpumalanga in group C.

The provincial ABC Motsepe League winners’ mentor told the Daily Dispatch that he was willing to sweat to be promoted to NFD.

“Tactically we are ready to compete at that level and we have all our players in a good shape.

“And funny enough I was talking to someone who spoke about the height that Buya Msutu poses.

“But if you have height you don’t have speed.

“And if we want to win this tournament we must beat the best of the best, and unfortunately we’re in a ‘group of death’, but there’s nothing wrong with that.

“Dolphins are playing at home, Buya Msutu are their neighbours and we are the visiting team, and we are the team that won everything before everybody.

“Those teams were here last season during the playoffs, so in terms of the experience it’s going to be so much tense, tactically and mentally,” said Motsoeneng.

He said they had to consider working for a better goal difference as he was expecting their opponents in their group to try and rectify the mistakes they committed last season during the playoffs held in East London.

“Those teams were here last season and they are still excited that they are coming again to the playoffs, but they will be too cautious about making the same mistake they did previously.

“They will want to play more on the counter and more on the setpiece and then we’ll see them when it comes to critical moments of the game which is corner-kicks, penalties, throw-ins.

“So I’m very wary of what could happen and a playing side like Msutu that normally moves everywhere – all you do is keep your lines tight and catch them on the transition.

“And we have lots of firepower going forward. We fly and it’s hard to catch us.

“Even if Buya Msutu can score three goals in the first half, don’t worry, we have a plan to come back into the game.

“It doesn’t matter if we have six supporters and they have three hundred,” said the former Bloemfontein Celtic keeper.

Motsoeneng said all his players were prepared to battle it out, and what made him sleep better at night was knowing how fast his players can play in any kind of environment.

“For instance we all know that Msutu, for instance, have tall players, but height is not a problem for us because we have agility on the pitch.

“And when we play against them I know it’s going to be very tactical on that field.

“And the nice part of it all is that we are playing one pitch so all the team we get to see the competition playing.”

Tornado won the third-tier league before honouring all their league commitments, and finished with 73 points after losing only one game.

And Motsoeneng said after all that hard work, he wasn’t expecting any team to go easy on them.

“These have been keeping a close eye, and I can assure you that they are going to make things harder for us.

“And if we don’t collect the needed points, we’ll be sent home in no time there.

“But there’s one thing for sure – my players will rise to the occasion.

“And I’m proud of what they have managed to achieve this season and I knew they could do it,” said Motsoeneng.

The tournament will begin on June 4 and will run until the 9th at the Turfloop University Fields.