Tinkler wary of struggling Stellenbosch ahead of Cape derby

Cape Town City coach Eric Tinkler will not be taking anything for granted when his side meet a struggling Stellenbosch FC in the DStv Premiership clash at Danie Craven Stadium on Friday.

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Stellies are second from the bottom of the league standings after collecting only 17 points in 18 league fixtures.

But, Tinkler won’t be fooled by Stellies recent poor form and says when it comes to the Cape derby things change.

“Obviously Stellenbosch are going through a rough patch at the moment, struggling to get positive results. But I don’t think that means anything because it is the derby and obviously they will come out fighting. We have seen it because we play with them a lot, especially friendly matches. And they know us quite well,” said the City mentor.

“We definitely can’t underestimate them. We have to make sure we go there and play with a lot of positivity, a lot of aggression, winning our duels and we can’t allow them to bully us. We also need to look to play our football ultimately.

“It is important to worry about ourselves, that is key. We come off the last three results which were very positive and now we need to build on that. I think the confidence and morale in the squad is a bit higher right now.”

Tinkler is expecting the stadium to be full since it is a local derby and says at the end of the day, he hopes the players will manage to entertain the crowd.

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“But as I said, do not underestimate Stellenbosch, especially when it comes to the Cape derby, there is going to be a lot of people there and I think that’s great. Hopefully it creates a great atmosphere and hopefully the players step up and produce quality football that the fans will enjoy.”

City are currently on position seven on the log with 23 points after 17 matches.