Bucs out to salvage season
ORLANDO Pirates’s priority at the moment is not so much how they do it‚ just as long as they get the result to salvage what has been a miserable season.
The Buccaneers are slowly clawing their way out of the depths of despair they have languished in for the better part of this campaign.
The porous defence is now a bit tighter and the players’ mental resolve is stronger‚ able to get themselves out of a mess without dropping their heads.
But there is still a lot of work to be done for them to be the real deal. Their clash with Baroka FC tonight at the Orlando Stadium is a reminder of that.
Just six points separate Pirates and the bottom-placed Bakgaga.
A loss to the rookies would drag Pirates to the relegation scramble while a victory would go a long way in their aim to maintain the record of having always finished in the top eight in the PSL era.
“It hasn’t been a good season for us but slowly we are getting there‚” Pirates defender Ayanda Gcaba said.
“The confidence in the team has returned. The only thing that we need to do now is to fight for the top eight and get to the final of the Nedbank Cup.
“At least now we are consistent and we are winning games. We just have to continue grinding out the results,” he said
“At this moment, it’s not about nice football. It’s about getting the results.
“You can play good football and not get the results.”
The Buccaneers will come into this match confident after advancing to the semifinal of the Nedbank Cup.
That tournament could be the club’s saving grace and would even give them a chance to return to the Caf Confederation Cup next year. Platinum Stars are in the Confederation Cup this year.
Just before they face Free State Stars at the Moruleng Stadium tonight they will find out who they will face in the group stage of the continental competition.
That success in Africa has made up for the mini-slump the club is in‚ having lost their last three league matches.
A loss for either Dikwena or Ea Lla Koto would put them deeper in the relegation dogfight that is heating up as much as the race for the championship.
“We need those points. We need them badly‚” Dikwena coach Cavin Johnson said.