Orlando Pirates co-coach Fadlu Davids says the luck in front of goals is just not there for his side, insisting he couldn’t blame his players for the 1-0 defeat by TS Galaxy because they “gave their all”.
Despite throwing everything they had at Galaxy on the day, Pirates couldn’t break down their well-drilled opposition who walked away with the three points thanks to Lifa Hlongwane’s goal with 30 minutes gone.
That is now three league games in a row with Pirates failing to score, Davids believes it’s a matter of luck and that his side did all they could.
“First of all, you want to say congratulations to TS Galaxy. I think their gameplan in relation to waiting for one or two moments worked,” Davids told SuperSport TV.
“Because they took their moment in the first half. That was the only moment they had. But that decisive moment in the box is what has been letting us down, especially in the PSL this season.
“Taking off a defender and bringing on a striker at half time, we had the width, we had the numbers in the box, the occupation in the tense positions. Once the balls came into the box, we were there to pick up the second balls.
“But, like I said, in the box we were not good enough today. In the box you have to calm, you have to be decisive, you have to be clear to really finish off the opportunity. That’s something that has been eluding us in the PSL. Our Caf form in terms of scoring goals is different but it’s not for us to blame the players.
“Because they put in everything, they gave their all but the luck in front of goals is just not there. But, we have to persevere, we have to switch our minds to the semi-finals [of the Caf Confederation Cup], we travel to Libya. We have to really go strong in this competition to be able to try to win it.”
Davids was asked whether it’s psychological for the players to do well in the Caf Confederation Cup and struggle in the domestic league.
“Not a psychological thing, because we knew we had to win our four games to be able to achieve [Caf] Champions League position,” he added.
“The other teams are not picking up points in that regard but it’s up to us, you can’t depend on the opponent every time and you’re not winning, especially games like these.
“But, like I said, congratulations to TS Galaxy, we have to now switch our focus to Caf in the semi-final and go with a confident mood and try to get a result in the first leg.”