A WIN is a win.
That was how Orlando Pirates captain Lehlohonolo Seema summed up Buc’s success in Saturday’s rain-soaked Telkom Charity Cup, when they needed two penalty shootouts in two matches to retain the trophy.
Bucs beat Kaizer Chiefs in the first semi- final, thanks to a 5-4 win in the penalty shootout. The teams went into a shootout after they were locked at 1-1 at full-time.
Pirates then needed a controversial penalty in normal time to force the final against Platinum Stars, who beat Sundowns 2-0 in the other semi-final, into another penalty shootout. The Buccaneers once again stepped up to the plate to win the penalty shootout 4-2 after the teams were deadlocked at 1-1 at the end of normal time.
“At the end of the day it does not matter how we won. The fact we won and retained the Charity Cup and gave ourselves a massive boost ahead of the new PSL season is what matters,” said Seema.
His coach, former Dutch captain Ruud Krol, agreed and admitted that there was still work to be done – and that time was running out ahead of Wednesday’s official kick-off to Pirates’ season, when they face Ajax Cape Town in the MTN8 quarter-final at Ellis Park. “It is good to retain this Cup and end our pre-season preparation by winning a big trophy. But my four Bafana Bafana players (Teko Modise, Katlego Mashego, Innocent Mdledle and Benson Mhlongo) still need more game time,” said Krol.
But what was impressive on a freezing day where the rain never let up from early morning, was that Krol fielded virtually two teams, to show he had plenty of depth.
The former Dutch captain stressed: “We did well with two squads in the Charity Cup but I noticed that some of the players we have signed from the lower leagues are still finding their feet at this higher level. They all show promise but also need more time to adapt. “Stars closed us down in the first half but we picked up in the second by creating chances but again we need to start making better use of the chances we create.”
The controversial moment of the final came when referee Buyile Gqubule awarded Pirates what looked like a soft penalty with Stars leading 1-0 in the 68th minute.
Defender Rooi Mahamutsa made no mistake to cancel out a first half goal by Japanese striker Norikazu Murakami to take the final to a penalty shootout.
Stars’ new coach Steve Komphela was diplomatic and showed his sportsmanship by congratulating Pirates and refused to blame the referee.
“I did not think it was a penalty but I am not going to make a fuss as these things happen in the game. To me it is immaterial. The ref has to make a call and he did.”
Komphela said that it could work out being a blessing in disguise losing the final after outplaying Mamelodi Sundowns 2-0 in the first semi. “It may sound silly saying that, but we showed we have bags of potential and maybe by losing but playing well against both Pirates and Sundowns we can keep our focus. We knew we would struggle to maintain our lead after scoring in the 12th minute against a side with the resources like Pirates who could field a new team in the final.
“But I am delighted with the day’s work as we showed we are on the right track and this team is going places in the new season. Getting to the final and stretching Pirates all the way was a major psychological boost for the players and we will build on this.”
The Charity spectacular which was in aid of deserving charities, was marred when Chiefs lodged a protest against Pirates before their game for not producing their registration cards before their semi-final. The cup committee said they could not hear the protest and referred Chiefs to the PSL’s disciplinary committee.
Amakhosi chairperson Kaizer Motaung had written on his club's website last week that he did not want his side to play in the Charity Cup as he felt it would affect his side’s performance in their MTN8 quarter- final against BidVest Wits. The ball is back in Chiefs court if they want to follow up their protest, but as this is a charity event and a friendly tournament, they could find public opinion turning against them as some would feel this was merely a case of sour grapes. — Sapa
source: http://www.dispatch.co.za/
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