Arrows aiming for a bull’s-eye start
The local season is about to get under way with some mouthwatering clashes on the cards
CONSISTENCY was the crucial component missing from Clinton Larsen’s Golden Arrows armoury last season. What did not disappear was the ability to get unexpected results against the big teams.
Last season’s 2-0 win over Orlando Pirates at Orlando Stadium may have been orchestrated by Serame Letsoaka, but Arrows’ defensive masterclass in a goalless draw against Mamelodi Sundowns in Atteridgeville was a feather in Larsen’s cap.
However, home defeats to Orlando Pirates (4-1) and Kaizer Chiefs (2-0) quickly buried their hopes.
Pirates will be Arrows’ first Premier Soccer League assignment on Wednesday evening at Orlando Stadium.
Larsen is not the type who cherry-picks matches but feels it is better for his side to get the big teams out of the way early.
He sees the game as part of a series of five matches that could determine his team’s league fate. Bad starts often lead to unsatisfactory campaigns.
“At this level you have to be ready to play against anybody and we’ve prepared for this game in the same way we’d prepare for any other game regardless of the opponent. Even if it’s the league champions or a National First Division side, the seriousness of our preparations always remain the same,” Larsen said.
“It’s all about the first five games of the season where you have to pick up points because if you don’t pick up anything in that series of matches, you find yourself in a situation where you’re looking from the bottom up. I don’t think the first game is anything one can look into but a minimum of seven to eight points will do us good. We want to settle in nice and early.”
The quality of Pirates’ off-season acquisitions is not lost on Larsen but Oupa Manyisa’s return from a broken leg is the one that seems to rattle him.
Arrows operated with a dysfunctional midfield last season and Pirates was one of the teams that exposed them.
Larsen is not fearing the worst but knows the importance of Manyisa’s dynamism to the Buccaneers.
“He’s like a new signing for them and he’s one of the best midfielders in the country. Everything goes through him and he’s the heartbeat of the club. We’ve got to deal with him as a collective because there’s enough quality in that Pirates team and that means we can’t be focusing on one player.
“We don’t just have to deal with Oupa, we have to deal with the entire midfield as a collective,” Larsen said.
In the first five games you have to pick up points