Birds to swoop for easy pickings
Winter Rose may have other ideas, though, for derby
SWALLOWS coach Yongama Mkaza says they will go straight for the kill when they visit arch-rivals Winter Rose in a Border Super League derby at the NU13 rugby field in Mdantsane this afternoon.
Swallows are coming off a moraleboosting 58-3 win over Berlin Tigers last week and Mkaza hopes his charges will ride that wave going into this crucial encounter against Winter Rose.
He said preparations for the much anticipated game went according to plan, but admitted it had been a battle after losing some of their most influential players to Border Rugby.
Released players were prop Yanga Xhakalala, centre Lonwabo Ndleki, Somila Mantyoyi and Aphiwe Stemele.
“There’s not much I can complain about even though we are still reeling after losing some of our most influential players to Border Rugby.
“We have about four players that have left Border, but then we are not complaining because we have recovery plans. We always prioritise players from rural areas like Alice, Middledrift and Tsholomnqa and I can assure you that we have players to fill those gaps.”
Mkaza said having won all their games to date has been satisfying because not one of those games had been a walk in the park.
“Each and every team we play against makes sure they give their all and that’s a good thing because it keeps us on our toes, hence we improve every time we play.
“So far all the games we’ve won have been with bonus points and every win always boosts the players confidence.
“But this game is totally different to other matches because it’s a derby.”
He said regardless of their good run so far, they were not feeling overconfident because they know their opponents will go for broke.
“If you watched the Gold Cup last year you would have seen it was crunches throughout the first half.
“It’s only when the game progressed that you could clearly see which side the game was heading to.
“Last year’s game was the highlight of the season for both teams, because it was tight and luckily it was even televised,” said Mkaza.
He continued: “But because of the experience we had on our side, the continuity and our fitness levels we won.’’
Other fixtures: Buffaloes v Fort Hare Blues (Border Cricket Ground), Black Eagles v Police (Chalumna), WSU All Blacks v Berlin Tigers (WSU University, Potsdam), Nashua Old Selbornians v Ntlaza Lions (Nashua Park, EL), Breakers v Ocean Sweepers (Mlungisi Field, Komani).