Cloete: ‘That’s the game of football’
They may have played poorly on Saturday, April 9, against Union at Currin Park, according to their coach Raymond Cloete, but Old Bens Football Club’s first XI managed to get a winning result with 1-0.
“This week we were far from our best and managed to get three points,” said the coach.
“That’s the game of football.”
After letting a two-goal lead slip in the 2-2 match against Luso Africa, at home, the previous weekend, in a match where they controlled the lion’s share of play, Cloete’s men were not as sprightly in Benoni on Saturday.
Starting the encounter slowly, Old Bens allowed their Turffontein opponents to dominate the first-half possession in what was a scrappy first half.
Cloete’s charges managed to conjure up two one-on-one opportunities against the Union goalkeeper, but squandered those chances, and the teams went goalless into the break.
The second stanza started in much the same fashion as the first.
“We played in patches,” said Cloete.
“We were good for 10 minutes and then poor for 10 minutes.”
The coach added that Bens could not get their usual style of play going and missed more good opportunities in the second half.
Despite their off day Ludick Malela eventually broke the stalemate with a late goal that handed the Benonians all three points.
Malela latched onto an excellent through ball from defence and hit a 35m scorcher that screamed into the top corner of the opposition’s net to secure the win.
The club’s second team (who led 5-2 at half-time) disappointingly drew 5-5 against the same opponents.
