If you look back at January, the biggest disappointment was not having Bafana Bafana participate in the Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon, but on the positive side for local teams, it gave coaches and opportunity to work on their teams and sharpen up for the second round of the DStv Premiership campaign. One coach who benefited a lot from the mini pre-season is TS Galaxy coach Sead Ramovic, who was roped in last October while the team were at the foot of the log.
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“We had a lot of time to prepare in January and we are ready for all the games that are coming. The mood in the camp reflects that everyone wants to pull the same weight in the same direction. We have to work hard just like we did against Chiefs, that will help us to conquer a team like Mamelodi Sundowns,” said Galaxy attacker Lindokuhle Mbatha.
The Rockets’ next assignment is probably one that most teams in the league don’t enjoy taking, and that’s playing defending champions Masandawana. The two sides will square up at the Mbombela Stadium on Wednesday, and Mbatha believes they are in good form to play a Downs side that is high in confidence after beating Al-Ahly in their backyard in the Caf Champions League this past weekend.
“We are playing them at the right time where we come back from two draws and a defeat and we beat Chiefs in the Nedbank Cup, and this shows that there is a lot of improvement and we will see that in the next coming games. We all know how important it is to get maximum points, especially at this time of the season, even a point is valuable, depending on how the game will unfold but if you can see the possibility of taking all three points, you have to go for it,” said Mbatha, who will be facing his former side, insisting that there is no love lost between him and the Brazilians.
“This thing of proving a point against your former team is neither here nor there. I am just grateful for the opportunity that they gave me but whenever I play against a former team, I know who my employer is and where my heart and mind is at. When you walk into the pitch, you have to get in there and give it all you have,” he said.
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