Pirates hope to emulate Cup form
Defender Ayanda Gcaba is hoping Bucs bring their Cup form into the league tonight.
Following the spirited run by Orlando Pirates in the Nedbank Cup which has seen the club reach the semifinals of the competition, defender Ayanda Gcaba is hoping that they will bring their Cup form into the league when they host a struggling Baroka FC at Orlando Stadium tonight.
The Soweto giants reignited their belief of finishing the season with silverware when they defeated Bloemfontein Celtic 2-1 in the last eight round of the Nedbank Cup, having ousted Free State Stars and EC Bees on their journey to the last four.
The Buccaneers, however, have only managed to achieve two vic- tories in six Absa Premiership League games during Kjell Jonevret’s tenure and recording four draws and two losses which sees them in ninth spot with 27 points.
“We have been playing quite well since the coach arrived and we have been working very hard during training sessions, it’s a pity things haven’t been going so well for us in the league,” said the Pirates defender.
“It is not that we have been doing badly. We have just been unlucky in some of the matches that we could have won.”
Gcaba, who fell out of favour at the club in the early stages of the league, has managed to lift up his performance under Jonevret getting two Man-of-the-Match accolades this month – against Maritzburg United and Celtic. The defender has vowed to continue doing well and says consistency at the Pirates back four has helped in the last couple of games, particularly his partnership with Happy Jele.
“We understand each other well and from my side, I just want to help the team finish the season well,” he added.
Baroka, meanwhile, have one thing on their minds heading into the daunting task of making sure the club starts collecting as many points as they can to ensure they survive their maiden top-flight football season.
The Limpopo club are languishing at the bottom half of the table with 21 points, three points away from safety. Despite their poor run, Bakgaga have been able to pull out some great performances against top sides, playing to a 2-2 draw with Kaizer Chiefs and beating SuperSport United 1-0 among their last five games.
The clash between Baroka and Pirates will bring back memories of their first league meeting last year when Baroka goalkeeper Oscarine Masuluke equalised with a spectacular bicycle kick late in the match.