The team is responsible, not Sandilands – Mlambo

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Orlando Pirates midfielder Xola Mlambo believes the entire team should take responsibility for goalkeeper Wayne Sandilands’ blunder against Highlands Park.

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The Buccaneers managed to secure a 1-1 draw with newly promoted side Highlands Park in their league opener at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday.

The Lions of the North failed to register a single shot on target, but Sandilands gifted them a goal after the shot-stopper received a backpass from Gladwin Shitholo. Sandilands tried to play it out with his first touch but completely missed his kick as the ball rolled into the net.

Mlambo refused to point any finger as he believes the team is responsible for anything that happens on the field.

‘It wasn’t easy, but this is the type of football we believe in and we play. Wayne is our brother, he didn’t make a mistake, the team made a mistake,’ Mlambo told KickOff.com.

‘If we could point fingers and blame Wayne, asking how we could pick ourselves up, it would have been selfish of us. Wayne didn’t concede a goal, Orlando Pirates did.

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‘So, a brother’s mistake is a mistake of us all and, as you could see, we trusted him and continued with the process that we believe in – playing and building up from the back.

‘He picked himself up and he did great, he managed to give us that extra man from the buildups and it was just unfortunate that we couldn’t convert our chances to cover the mistake.’

The Pirates midfielder says he is happy to walk away with a point against the newly promoted side and expects mistakes to happen early in the season.

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‘But fortunately, we got a point. It’s not bad, it’s the first game of the season and mistakes like this do happen. It’s more or less a mistake that I would make when trying to pass a ball and the opponents intercept it and go and score,’ he added.

‘It’s just unfortunate that when he [Sandilands] missed the ball, it went through the back of the net, but then we as Orlando Pirates conceded the goal, not Wayne Sandilands. His fault is our fault.

‘We all went down but managed to come back and lift ourselves up, and with the support of the coaches and the supporters, it became much easier when we kept on going.

‘It’s just a pity that we couldn’t get the positive result, which was the three points for us.’

Orlando Pirates will be hoping to bounce back when they take on Chippa United at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Wednesday, with kick-off set for 7:30pm.

Photo: Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix

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