Maritzburg United head coach Fadlu Davids was left to lament his side’s lapse of concentration in critical moments as they suffered a 2-1 defeat to Orlando Pirates at Orlando Stadium on Friday night.
Davids was disappointed to concede in the dying moments of the first half, with Monnapule Saleng netting the opener for Pirates on the stroke of halftime. Terrence Dzvukamanja then doubled the lead in the second.
“What a fantastic first-half performance, especially tactically, our boys applied exactly what we asked of them,” Davids told SuperSport after the match.
“To concede in a critical moment, in a phase we spoke about, Saleng cutting in more than 90 degrees with a ball into his left foot, was very disappointing. “I think we tried to keep the spirits up because one second later we’re going into the half with 0-0, we can build on the momentum because the first-half was definitely ours tactically but not using the chances.”
Davids felt the KwaZulu-Natal side may have switched off for Pirates’ second goal, although he did question the manner in which Pirates scored. “I think it was just a switch off moment, I don’t think we were even ready with our defensive structure, not even knowing the ball is going to be played,” he added.
“I was actually surprised that maybe it was played before the whistle but definitely a lapse of concentration, switching off, not dropping in sync as a line to concede the second goal.” Despite the defeat, Davids remained proud of his players’ performance and urged them to take the lessons learnt from the game and apply them to the remainder of the season.
“That basically killed the game but the fight after that. Njoti last week out of the squad and that is the message to the entire squad, we have a small squad and if you’re not in the team this week, be ready to start next week because anyone can play at any time,” he said.
“We have to take this lessons, Kaizer Chiefs, the lessons tonight and take on SuperSport and the rest of our remaining games because I believe if we can continue like this, not only against bigger clubs, any team we face we can get three points.”
FT | Orlando Pirates 2️⃣-1️⃣ Maritzburg United FC
A narrow defeat on the road. WeAreUnited TeamofChoice pic.twitter.com/g0oLAUyn5w
— Maritzburg United FC (@MaritzburgUtd) February 17, 2023
