Orlando Pirates co-coach Fadlu Davids came out to explain why it is difficult for Thembinkosi Lorch to play entire matches.
The Buccaneers winger missed the first half of the campaign after picking up a shoulder injury in pre-season.
He has been a breath of fresh air in the Pirates attack but only finished three of his 12 appearances so far, leading to Davids being asked why Lorch cannot play the 90 minutes.
“Thembinkosi Lorch did finish the last match,” he said on Monday.
“You just got to look into December, the December period where we had eight matches with two days in between we were in that period where that was the period where Lorch came back from his operation on his shoulder.
“There was a big discussion in relation to his minimal standards and is he ready to play. And with two matches every week, they weren’t friendly matches.
“You pursue minimal standards, you’re ready now to start playing competitive matches. So ideally, you’d want him to play at least 45 minutes before you start integrating him into the squad.
“And we had that game where it was AmaZulu, we went slightly ahead of schedule, we put him in the last 10 minutes okay, he’s not going to be able to play a friendly match. There are no friendly matches scheduled within that time.
“So we took the risk in bringing him in a slightly too early in December. But it paid off within that 10 minutes he created four clear cut opportunities could have scored himself right at the death.”
The Orlando Pirates mentor further explained that the coaching staff is trying to manage Lorch’s minutes in order to have him as fit as possible.
“So we have to be clear in relation to how we manage not only him, but the entire squad. He is not yet, if you look at the data in relation to last season, in relation to the season before, certain KPIs, he’s not yet reaching that level. But it will come with time,” he added.
“We have to support not only him but the entire group and manage the group well, that you get the best team on the pitch at all times not necessarily the best players on the pitch.”
Lorch had made 12 appearances for Pirates in 2021/22, assisting three goals but is yet to score himself.
