Ncikazi happy with Pirates win, but rues missed chances 

Orlando Pirates co-coach Mandla Ncikazi was full of praise for his team after Bucs edged closer to  qualifying for the knockout stages of the Caf Confederation Cup.

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Pirates moved to the top of Group B standings after smashing Royal Leopards of eSwatini 3-0 at the Orlando Stadium last Sunday, ending their three games winless streak in all competitions in the process.

The victory saw the Buccaneers take their points tally to nine in four games with only two games remaining in the group stages. Algerian side JS Saoura and Libyan outfit Al-Ittihad are tied on seven points for the second spot, while Leopards are rooted at the bottom of the table with no points.

“I am happy for the players, I am happy for the team that we won. At least we are still on course for the main objective which is to qualify for the quarter-finals. I am happy that we scored three goals, but I feel like we could have scored more,” said Ncikazi.

Ncikazi, however, reckons Pirates could have scored more goals in the Leopards tie.

“The very same sickness that has put us in a very bad position even in the league, where you dominate matches, but you just miss the main part, which is scoring. First half, there was a bit of frustration. It’s difficult to play against a low block, you must score with the little chances you get you must score. But I’m still happy with the overall performance, the application, but we could have scored more goals.

The Soweto giants will now change their focus to domestic duties where they meet SuperSport United in the DStv Premiership at home on Wednesday.

Pirates are currently fourth on the log standings, having collected 32 points in 22 matches.

Meanwhile, playing in the group stages of the Caf Confederation Cup has been extremely an eye opener for eSwatini based club Royal Eagles, with head coach Edwin Matsebula stating  that they will use this journey as a lesson following their second defeat to Pirates.

Leopards have now lost all of their first four games of the group phase, with the club only managing to score three goals, while conceding 13 goals.

“Basically, I think we were better today defensively compared to our last game in Mbombela, until that incident when my players didn’t play to the whistle. I thought the second assistant raised his flag and my players stopped marking, as result Pirates scored the first goal which surprised us.  But overall, I think we were not sharp going forward and we created few chances,” said Matsebula.

“But like I said the last time, this is a learning curve for us. It is the first time we reach the group stages, so, getting into the group stages is a step forward for us. Otherwise, we will take the lessons and go forward.”