AmaZulu head coach Romain Folz feels the deserved to beat Orlando Pirates but admits he’s excited with the group of players at his disposal.
The Frenchman oversaw his first match in charge of Usuthu after succeeding Brandon Truter in the role last Sunday and produced an impressive display in the 1-1 draw at Orlando Stadium.
While captain Veli Mothwa produced a Man of the Match display between the sticks, his side showed plenty of attacking endeavour and courage to take the game to the Buccaneers.
“I think we did a very good first half and maybe unfair we didn’t score more, I believe that the boys applied the game plan very nicely,” he said at Orlando Stadium in the post-match press conference.
“We knew was going to press us high in the first twenty-five minutes and give us space in behind the defence, so we were able to hit them behind the back three or four times. And I believe we could or should have scored more.
“Then in the second half we had a solid ten minutes and after that, we dropped physically, so it’s an area of improvement [we can make] one of the biggest for me – if we want to be able to play how I want my team to play, we need a lot of movement off the ball and dynamism between the lines.
“When the body doesn’t react the way you want it, it becomes very difficult to play that type of football and then you start playing long [balls]. And that goes a little bit against what we aim to do in the first place.
“I don’t blame the boys, it’s a process. I am not… I don’t have all the elements to judge what was done before, but my assessment of the situation is that the base is solid, there are just one or two things, the physical department is one of them, but not the only [area] we can improve.”
The point leaves the KwaZulu Natal-based outfit in ninth place, seven points off league leaders Mamelodi Sundowns and Folz admits one of the things he wasn’t pleased about is how they conceded just before the break, having lost the ball during a counter-attack in their own half.
“I’m also not happy with how we conceded, I always tell the boys we can rewatch the sequence, we lost an easy ball, playing someone who is under pressure. So we just invited pressure by playing a short pass in our own half. And then they come at us with two passes and a finish,” he continued.
“I think it was very much something we could have avoided, and I believe that as much as we’re not happy because we wanted to win the game, I believe the base and the desire to improve on what the boys showed tonight is very interesting for the future.
“We’ve only been together for four days, coming here [to Orlando Stadium] was the best test they could have for a first game together.
“You play Pirates on the field, you know they’re under pressure and they’ll try to do their best if you can match them and be the best, which I think was the case for 50 minutes, tells you a lot. It’s not perfect but the base is very interesting.”
