Mokwena Hails Mailula In Shalulile’s Absence

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena has praised Cassius Mailula’s contribution at the time of difficulty for the club when they don’t have a centre forward.

Mailula scored as Sundowns extended their lead at the top of the DStv Premiership table with 3-0 victory over Royal AM at the Chatsworth Stadium on Saturday.

Sundowns moved to 28 points after 12 matches, six ahead of second-placed Richards Bay, with this game for the club being the last before the FIFA World Cup in Qatar next month.

“He’s doing exceptionally well in a very difficult moment for us,” said Mokwena after the game in Durban.

“You are talking about players that are missing, but we are missing almost our entire frontline. To play a young boy like Cassius and give him the opportunities that he’s getting, it augurs well not just for Sundowns, but for South African football and long may it continue.”

🇿🇦 Cassius Mailula’s first three starts for 👆 @Masandawana:

La Passe ⚽️⚽️
Maritzburg ⚽️⚽️
Royal AM ⚽️🅰️

Six goal contributions. Promising. 💫 #DStvPrem | @iDiskiTimes pic.twitter.com/zSSrClGvce

— Lorenz Köhler (@Lorenz_KO) October 29, 2022

Sundowns is without their top marksman Peter Shalulile due to an injury and he has missed the last six matches, something that is a rare occurrence as the Tshwane giants have relied on the Namibian’s top shape in the last two seasons.

Meanwhile, Mailula has stepped up in Shalulile’s absence, scoring a brace in the 8-0 win over Le Passe in the CAF Champions League second leg second preliminary round this month, his first two league goals when Sundowns hammered Maritzburg United 5-0 on Tuesday, in what was Mokwena’s first game in charge as Head Coach.

In scoring that brace, he became the second youngest player to score two goals for Sundowns at the age of 21 years, four months and 14 days old. Raphael Chukwu is the youngest player for Sundowns to score a brace, as he was 20 days younger than Mailula, in November 1996 away against AmaZulu.

Mailula scored again as Sundowns eased to a win over Royal AM and Mokwena feels the 21-year-old is on the right path and warns that a lot will come from him.

“With a lot of humility, with a lot of good support around him, feet on the ground to continue to work hard, there’s a lot of potential,” said Mokwena, whose side have scored eight goals in two matches without letting one in.

“Cassius is very good on his left and also on his right.

“His build-up play is not so good. We get to him but then we don’t develop attacks, so we have to work on that. His movements sometimes are quite rushed or too late, but that will come with a bit of experience.”