Hunt praises Kaizer Chiefs players after United draw

Kaizer Chiefs head coach Gavin Hunt felt his side’s late equaliser was just reward after they held Maritzburg United to a 1-1 draw at the Harry Gwala Stadium.

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It still wasn’t the result Amakhosi would have hoped for, but an improved second half display saw United’s Nazeer Allie somehow head off the line from a Lebo Manyama effort, before the same player tucked in with three minutes left, albeit from an offside position.

“I the second half we changed it and we were a different side,” Hunt told SuperSport TV after the match. The Amakhosi coach made a triple substitution at the break, after Thabiso Kutumela, who was also offside, had given Maritzburg the lead in a first half in which Ersnst Middendorp’s side could have scored plenty more.

“They hit the bar (in the second half), but what Allie did, he did it for me for three years (at Bidvest Wits), I’ve never seen a guy clear the ball off the line like that. I am happy we got some reward for the effort we put in tonight,” added Hunt.

As for Middendorp, he was unhappy his team hadn’t put the game to bed when they had the opportunity in the opening period.

“Picking up a point is ok but if you see the game … we started with a high intensity, with a high line, we scored the first goal and there was the opportunity to score a second goal. In the second half we also had two or three counters (Judas Moseamedi did come off the bench and hit the crossbar). We knew we wanted to hit them on the counter, that was more clear in the second half. In the first … we should have scored the second goal,” said the United head coach.

Middendorp was happy with the performance of Kutumela, who struck the opening goal and was a menace to the Amakhosi defence throughout the first half.

“If you can give him a role where he can be at his best, he does well, there is a clear structure (that he can play in). He holds onto the ball at the right moments, he scores himself, and he assists players, he is a player who was on a downward turn in November and December but he has come back now at the beginning of the second half s the season. There is a big improvement, on and off the field.”

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