CHIPPA UNITED NOT SCARED OF CHIEFS
We’re scoring goals now, says Thopola
CHIPPA United defender Diamond Thopola has fired a warning shot at Kaizer Chiefs, saying the Chilli Boys will not be taking the friendly game lightly against the Soweto Giants on Saturday.
The Port Elizabeth club play Amakhosi in a Premiers Cup fixture at the Sisa Dukashe Stadium, in Mdantsane, from 3pm.
Thopola said the match would be a good test for Chippa United to gauge their strength before the start of the new season.
The Glamour Boys will go into the game oozing with confidence following their 1-0 win over Orlando Pirates in the Black Label Cup at the weekend.
However, the former Thanda Royal Zulu skipper is not fazed about the Kaizer Chiefs’ victory.
“We are taking this game very seriously as a team,” Thopola said. “We couldn’t get a better team than Chiefs – and we know what they are all about.
“Getting a friendly against Kaizer Chiefs is a good test for us to see where we are in terms of preparations and also whether everyone is match fit. It would be nice for everybody to get a run.”
Chippa returned this week from a two-week preseason camp in Durban – and the 26-year-old defender says they have prepared well for the league.
“The preseason camp went okay. The guys really pushed themselves. We have been working very hard,” Thopola said.
“We have a couple of new players and they have gelled well with the old players.
“The atmosphere was great in the preseason camp.
“I believe every- one enjoyed themselves and everyone gained something from the camp.
“I am just looking forward to the new season. I hope we will not repeat the mistakes of last season,” Thopola said.
“We do know where we went wrong and every season we are trying to better ourselves.
“We are trying to make sure that the team do better than we did the previous season.
“Last season, Chippa started well but towards the end things did not go our way. We found ourselves fighting relegation, which is the worst feeling ever,” he said.
“I don’t wish anyone to go through that situation.
“I am just glad we saved the team and are still in the PSL.
Thopola said the players were able to score many goals in their friendly games, which was promising as the team had struggled to score goals in the previous season.
Besides netting goals, he said another key area that coach Dan “Dance” Malesela had focused on was for the players to get to know each other quickly, before the start of the new PSL season.
“We also had to make sure that we stay very solid at the back,” Thopola said. “We have a couple of experienced players, which will help the team going forward.
“Last season, we went through three games without scoring but in the camp we worked on that.
“We also had a couple of clean sheets, which was something we had struggled with.”
We are taking this game very seriously as a team