The Kiwi connection
New Zealand trio feature in SA’s TKO cup final
THE Telkom Knockout final is going global tonight. It won’t be screaming headlines or necessarily newspaper fodder, but with Michael Boxall, Matt Sim and possibly Jeremy Brockie in action at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in the cup for their respective clubs, New Zealand lapped it all up this week and there could be room for more.
Boxall and Brockie, who is a doubt for SuperSport United against Cape Town City following an ankle injury suffered in the semi-final two weeks ago, arrived in South Africa nearly two years ago and set the Premier Soccer League alight.
Sim is flying under the radar in the Mother City, but his contribution has not gone unnoticed back home.
It’s the first time Matsatsantsa face City, a side rebranded after businessman John Comitis bought the Mpumalanga Black Aces franchise in May and relocated the club to Cape Town.
The success, however rapid, has been evident as they go into the cup final (6pm kickoff) as league leaders after 12 matches.
The Kiwi connection could be something special and the arrival of Boxall and Brockie in January last year from the Australian A-League has proved that there’s more than just rugby superstars Down Under.
Brockie was impressive from the start, finishing the rest of that season at SuperSport with seven goals in just 13 league matches, while Boxall took some time getting used to his new environment.
But his quality as an attack-minded defender was not in question, although his defending left a lot to be desired.
Sim, a versatile player, has been a squad player mostly at City, starting a few matches here and coming off the substitutes bench there and used in midfield.
Tonight, all three will want to make their mark with their roles in particular quite critical in swaying the game.
Boxall spoke about City’s attack this week but also countered that argument with the fact that SuperSport have the best defensive record in the league, as well as good strikers in Brockie and Bradley Grobler, even though the duo are in a tight race to be fully fit.
Eric Tinkler, Sim’s coach at City, has often lamented how soft the goals they concede are
Both teams could be on edge.
“It will be more structured in the beginning because it’s a final,” said SuperSport coach Stuart Baxter this week.
“And then later they are going to want to kick and so will we, then I think it will develop into an open game.
“If it stays 0-0 for a long time, then people will get a bit careful and not wanting to lose it – like all the old clichés.
“Eric (Tinkler) will talk about his back four needing to be tight, not allowing any transitions. But when you get into a game and it’s a final, you want to go for it as well.”
There will obviously be several key players who can be game-changers, not least City captain Lebogang Manyama and winger Aubrey Ngoma, who have scored 10 goals and have 12 assists between them this season.
In the midst of all of that, Boxall, Sim and Brockie will also want to have a say.