Roger that: Pirates boss De Sa |
ORLANDO PIRATES fans, reeling from a THIRD cup final defeat
before Christmas, took to the social networks on Saturday night to vent their
understandable anger after a SECOND consecutive failed showdown against modest Platinum
Stars.
Penalties divided the teams in the MTN8 final in Durban at
the end of September. On Saturday night in Mbombela, super-sub Mogakolodi Ngele’s
late brace kept the Crocodiles smiling in the Telkom KO. And of course, those
two domestic finals were split by the two-legged African Champions failure
against mighty Egyptians Al Ahly.
Attempts to cheer up the boo-hooing Ghost proved fruitless. But
you have to try. As a player, as a coach, as a fan, losing a semi-final is far
more gut-wrenching than a final I said. But no, “we’ve been humiliated three
times, the final is worse” the bitter Bucca chanted.
When it was suggested Kaizer Chiefs would LOVE to play in a
final this season when their arch-rivals have played in THREE, I was shouted
down again. Apparently reaching a final is, for Pirates fans, worse than going
out in the semi-final – or even the first round.
For Roger de Sa, with Steve Komphela and Ruud Krol lurking
in the unemployment queue, there appears to be no logical way out. Though
Komphela’s unplanned Free State Stars exit was no more deliberate than Krol
leaving CS Faxien claiming bonus non-payment, both men are eminentaly capable
of taking over at a Pirates side still stuck at the foot of the PSL with all
those games in hand.
Even the economic argument, usually the old reliable in
these debates, failed to impress. Look at this: As Telkom Knock-out runners-up,
Orlando Pirates won R1 750 000. For the African Champions League, second
place meant R10 350 000. In the “winner takes all” MTN8, they took home
R800 000 like the other six non-finalists.
Lovable little Allan Freese might have won R10 250 000
for his Dikwena with two cup wins but De Sa can rightly claim to have bought
over R13 000 000 into the coffers while giving Pirates fans THREE
separate occasions to celebrate a final showdown.
And then there’s De Sa himself. Unfazed by the storm breaking
around him, he shrugged off yet another gigantic disappointment and said: “Football
can be a cruel game. But Ngele’s winner was a cracker, no doubt about that.
“It’s a sad moment. It’s missed chances, we should have
scored sealed the game off with another goal. When you are holding a 1-0 lead,
there’s always a chance you could concede. We just didn’t finish it off.
“You have to keep going. What do you do after losing three
cup finals? You move on to the next one and win that.”
Ironically those could be his last words as Pirates boss.
Time – and Dr Irvin Khoza – will tell.
BOLLOCKZ! my own football show on www.ballz.co.za, airs every Thursday from 9am. See the Ballz channel on www.YouTube.com for our growing collection of interviews with the big names in South African football.
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