Gallants coach says they wanted to win at all costs in Confed Cup

After securing their spot in the semifinals of the Caf Confederation Cup, Marumo Gallants coach Raymond Mdaka said they wanted to win the match at all costs against Egyptian club Pyramids FC.

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Gallants and Pyramids played to a 1-1 draw in the first leg played at 30 June Stadium a week ago. 

For the return leg, Mdaka knew that they had to throw everything at their opponents to move onto the next stage of the tournament. 

They managed to make things go their way as Celimpilo Ngema’s strike in the 40th minute won the match for Gallants, claiming a 1-0 victory at Royal Bafokeng Stadium last Sunday.

Overall, Gallants progressed to the next phase of the competition with a 2-1 aggregate win.

Mdaka says they were under pressure for some time in the opening minutes of the game. But as it progressed, they started to get the hang of things and got the goal they wanted.

“It was a very good game, they are a good team. But we wanted to win at all costs. They came at us instead of waiting for counter-attacks. We played under pressure in the first few minutes of the game. But we were able to come back and we managed to get a goal,” said Mdaka.

“Then we tried to keep the ball, manage the spaces and manage the game until we got the result we wanted.”

In the last four of the tournament, Bahlabane Ba Ntwa will battle it out with Tanzanian outfit Yanga SC for a place in the final.

Yanga knocked-out Nigerian club Rivers United after winning the tie 2-0 on aggregate to set up a meeting with Gallants.

The first leg of the semifinal between Gallants and Yanga will be played on 10 May, with the return leg scheduled for 17 May.

Gallants’journey in the Confed Cup has been a very inspiring one despite the team’s woes in the domestic league.

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The club from Limpopo will now take a break from continental duty, as they turn their focus back to the DStv Premiership. 

The travel to KwaZulu-Natal for a meeting with struggling  Maritzburg United in a relegation battle encounter at the Harry Gwala Stadium on Wednesday.