University Of Pretoria head coach Tlisane Motaung has explained what it meant to his side not to lose the last game of the season against Cape Town Spurs, which prevented the hosts from direct promotion.
AmaTuks denied Spurs automatic promotion on the last day of the Motsepe Foundation Championship season, holding them to a 1-1 draw at Athlone Stadium, which allowed Polokwane City to leapfrog them on the log.
Former Ajax Cape Town midfielder Samuel Julies broke the hearts of Cape Townies deep in the second half with a free-kick that left Lincoln Vyver with no chance.
The Tshwane-based side fought so hard in the last few minutes of the game with goalkeeper Tshepo Mamabolo making two crucial saves, including a massive block from the defenders.
After the match, Tuks celebrated every moment of that and Motaung explained the reason for all that and mentioned that they had to fight for their contracts.
“This game to players it was contract based, they had to protect their jobs because if you don’t get three points here or you lose all three points your position as an individual might be compromised,” Motaung told gathered journalists.
“They had to fight for their contracts so that at least when we sit down next week, we look at who raised the hand in this particular game so that at least we decide better going forward. So mainly for me, I think players were fighting to protect their jobs.”
