Ubuntu eye more PSL prey

IT’S a massive week for rookie National First Division (NFD) side Ubuntu Cape Town. While they’ve garnered much-needed exposure for the club in recent weeks, their future could well hinge on how they perform over the next seven days.

Today, Ubuntu host Free State Stars in the quarter-finals of the Nedbank Cup, at the Athlone Stadium ( kickoff 3.30pm). On Tuesday, they are back in league action against high-riding Real Kings – and then, next Saturday, they have another tricky league fixture against Super Eagles.

At the moment, Ubuntu are not looking too healthy in the NFD – second-from-bottom – and, because of that, American coach Casey Prince admits he has to box clever. While they want to continue their fairy- tale run in the Cup competition, their precarious league position has to be taken into consideration too. “We are excited about the quarter-final, but we have to play thrice in a week,” said Prince. “As coaches, we will have to manage and motivate, and make sure that the players are focused on one game at a time.

“We’ve trained well, so it’s good to see the squad is fit... It’s obvious that we will have to use multiple players this week, and selection will be important. But we are confident and we are ready to give our best.”

Ubuntu beat Polokwane City and AmaZulu in previous rounds. Now they are keen to oust one more top-flight club in the in-form Free Staters.

“It’s clear that Stars run hard and play a direct brand of football,” said Prince. “They play a little differently to Polokwane and AmaZulu – a bit like the teams in the NFD, just a far better version. We have been making progress, but what is going to be important is how we respond on Saturday.

“We have been a bit unlucky, in that we’ve given away quite a lot of points.”