IT TAKES MORE THAN A VUVUZELA TO KNOCK ME DOWN. BUT WE ARE
RUNNING OUT OF TIME.
Those are not my words, they are the words of Bucca Bucca boss
Roger de Sa, the only football coach under more pressure than QPR’s Harry
Redknapp in the football-speaking world right now.
De Sa, pelted with vuvuzelas by the violent elements of the
Ghost after Wednesday night’s epic 1-1 draw with AmaZulu in Durban, has never
shied away from the pressures of managing one of South Africa’s biggest
footballing franchises.
A few weeks ago, the former Wits and Santos boss told me: “Every
week could be my last at Pirates, I face
that every day and I face it head on. I knew that when I took this job.”
After the missile-throwing mayhem at the Moses Mabhida – the
FIFTH incident of Ghostly misbehaviour from the nation’s most notorious fans in
two tears – De Sa shrugged off the impending furore: “It takes more than a
vuvuzela to know me down! Sometimes it's just a bunch of crazy fans. You don't
see that happening. You need to speak to people who know the game.
“Obviously you’re
always going to get a couple of them that are angry, that’s the way it goes in
football all over the world.
“Fans want to blame
one person. We’re second on the log. When I arrived at this club they were
10th.”
We exchanged text messages last night, with De Sa – hit in
the face by one missile thrown by the crowd - offering a reassuring “Yup, all
okay” before issuing the stock quote: “Time is running out. It's becoming more
and more difficult. We have to focus, keep on working.”
De Sa admits his side “took the foot off the pedal” after
going ahead in Durban and he now boasts a record of one-pointers to rival
SuperSport United coach Gavin Hunt. Some say Pirates – without a PSL win in
five – are drawing more than the controversial cartoonist Zapiro.
But Pirates fans should note AmaZulu, under new coach Craig
Rosslee, are hardly a pushover these days. Unbeaten this year, former Pirates
assistant coach Rosslee said: “It was like a boxing match at times. Pirates
looked hungry but we clawed our way back to get a point. I'm very happy with
the way the guys got back into the game.”
And the missile-throwing Ghost may not have noticed Kaizer
Chiefs, seven points ahead of their Soweto rivals, nearly came unstuck
themselves in a come-from-behind 1-1 draw with Maritzburg United at Polokwane.
Now Pirates face the home leg of their Champions League tie
with Zambia’s habitual title-holders Zanaco at Soccer City on Saturday while
Chiefs go to Golden Arrows in the PSL. Defeat for Chiefs means Pirates, if they
were to win both games in hand against Ajax and Sundowns, could go to within a
point of the top with five to play.
Unlike Spain, England and Germany, the PSL remains wide open
if Chiefs let complacency creep in despite Stuart Baxter’s strict instructions
not to.
With #rogerandout trending on twitter, I urge caution to those
Buccaneers hoping for last-gasp regime change, a reflex sacking in Chippa
style.
True, there will be no third treble for the Iron Duke’s Sea
Robbers. The sacking of Ruud Krol after the first championship was a mistake De
Sa could do nothing about. And the decision to let Tokelo Rantie return to
Scandinvia after a year on loan plundering goals with Benni McCarthy was out of
his hands too.
De Sa took over from Peruvian youth coach Augusto “Bad Back”
Palacios at a time of turmoil early this season, he did so in the middle of
huge upset in his own private life (see http://www.neal-collins.blogspot.com/2012/09/music-to-iron-dukes-ears-benni-mccarthy.html,
some Pirates fans may feel less inclined to confront their coach after reading)
and he has, despite the obvious difficulties, taken the club to second in the
PSL and further in the Champions League than most expected.
I felt Pirates did okay against AmaZulu and have every
chance of taking the title fight down to the wire. Others are less optimistic.
They are amazed to hear last year’s Championship-clincher McCarthy was in Spain
on personal business while his team-mates were fighting it out against AmaZulu.
One source inside the club told me how, when Benni won an
award at the PSL honours ceremony last year, he spent the ENTIRE R15,000 prize
money on drinks for the squad.
And they suggest Benni – who famously fought
with De Sa and his hardman assistant Eric Tinkler when after the Telkom KO
final between Wits and Pirates last season – is the key to unrest in the camp.
That his couldn’t care less attitude – which includes attending boxing matches,
commentating on SuperSport when his side are playing and contradicting De Sa on
his fitness – has poisoned the atmosphere.
Moeneeb Josephs, replaced by Senzo Meyiwa in goal, has a
role to play too. Dropped and injured, the shadow of Josephs looms large. He
may be toothless but the man has fangs; he is a major character and a
charismatic figure. Before the last Soweto derby, Irvin Khoza apparently told
De Sa Josephs MUST play after the defeats against Maluti FET College and Moroka
Swallows saw Meyiwa concede seven goals in two games.
But De Sa stuck to his guns, ordered Josephs to stay well
away from Soccer City to prevent chants of “Slimkat” from the Ghost, and Senzo was
man of the match in a goalless draw.
Then there’s the Nigerian veteran Onyekachi Donatus Okonkwo.
In his second spell at the club, Okonkwo has done little of merit but my
scorpions tell me the man who once famously got to grips with referee Daniel
Bennett he had a tiff with one of the technical staff recently amid growing
tensions.
Andile Jali started Wednesday night’s game like a train and
my Bafana scouting instincts were alerted – but the little man soon tired and
was spraying wayward passes by the end. Was that heart problem in 2010 just a
scare?
Lucky Lekgwathi, the over-experienced captain, was blamed by
some for the equaliser while Siya Sangweni’s injury comes on top of casualties
like Thandani Ntshumayelo and Rooi Mahamutsa.
Take all this and then throw in Patrick Phungwayo, persuaded
to have a go at De Sa – who was also his boss at Wits – in the post-match
interview on Wednesday.
Yes, the list of problems is long, but not endless.
To those Pirates fans who suggest the team is “not trying”
because De Sa has “lost the dressing room” I say: BUNKUM. It’s too early for
professional players to give up and scupper their coach’s career when there is
silverware still to be won.
I suggest the Ghost should haunt Zanaco tomorrow (8.15pm LIVE on SABC1). Blimey, if
they never get punished for it, then why not throw missiles at the Zambians and
create a nasty atmosphere for African Champions league visitors for once.
Victory over the big-talking bankers – stunned by a 1-0 home defeat in the
first leg - would be a REAL coup for South Africa football.
And for the rest of the season – or at least until Benni
sings and the title is mathematically beyond their reach – perhaps it would be
a good idea for all black-and-white fans to support De Sa and his so-called DeSasters.
If you won’t take my word for it, how about this from
Lekgwathi, a man I have met and admired: "Our supporters have to
understand that not all games will go our way. They should support us
in good times and bad, that is what true supporters do.
"We can overcome this slump, this winless streak must end.
We are a big club and winning has become a way of life - but supporters
need to understand sometimes victory is hard to come by. We must pull together.”
Seven points behind with a game in hand? Stranger things
have happened. Ask Kevin Keegan, the Newcastle manager in 1995. His Toon were
12 points ahead of Manchester United in February. And they famously blew it,
leaving Sir Alex Ferguson all smiles and Keegan headed for the exit.
Have faith, Bucca Bucca. You never know…
Q3 STANDINGS
Played | GD | Points | |
Kaizer Chiefs | 8 | 10 | 18 |
Moroka Swallows | 8 | 5 | 17 |
SuperSport United | 8 | 3 | 15 |
Bidvest Wits | 8 | 2 | 15 |
AmaZulu | 8 | 1 | 13 |
Orlando Pirates | 7 | 3 | 12 |
Platinum Stars | 8 | 2 | 11 |
Mamelodi Sundowns | 8 | 3 | 10 |
Bloemfontein Celtic | 8 | -1 | 10 |
Golden Arrows | 8 | -1 | 10 |
Maritzburg United | 8 | -2 | 9 |
Free State Stars | 8 | 0 | 8 |
University of Pretoria | 8 | -3 | 6 |
Ajax Cape Town | 7 | -6 | 4 |
Black Leopards | 8 | -8 | 4 |
Chippa United | 8 | -8 | 4 |
Chippa way of chopping the coach is not the way dear Buccaneers...
ReplyDeleteThe fact that Pirates is always trailing Chiefs, in terms of games played, is putting a lot of pressure on the whole squad. It won't be easy for Ezimnyama to play catch-up if Chiefs keeps playing the way they do.
ReplyDeleteHey great post, go Kaizer Chiefs
ReplyDeleteIt won't be easy for Ezimnyama to play catch-up if Chiefs keeps playing the way they do...
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