Despite winning their CAF Confederation Cup game against Royal Leopard 6-2, Orlando Pirates co coach Mandla Ncikazi has sent a stern warning to his team.
Pirates were stunned as the eSwatini team took a 2-0 lead in the opening eight minutes of the game, but Pirates were able to turn things around in the end.
Ncikazi says they had to deliver stern words at half-time, as while they were able to come back, he warns that will not always be the case, so they must start on the right foot.
“We had to kick some chairs,” Ncikazi said at the post match press conference.
“We had to break some desks, because I thought the mentality that the team brought first half was not what we expected…
“Which we warned them up about, that if you take things lightly like we did, we cannot start matches like that it’s unlike us.
“A team like us, sometimes you won’t have an opportunity to come back like it happened.
“So a start is important, a positive start, start on the front foot. And I don’t think today we did that.
“God being good, we could come back, but other matches we won’t have such an opportunity.”
That half-time conversation could have been worse, had Pirates not come in with the lead, with Kwame Peprah scoring just before the break to make it 3-2.
“I think it was highly important, it changes the narrative of what you’re going to say halftime because if you we were a goal behind, you would have said something different,” he added”
Pirates return to DStv Premiership action this week, welcoming Cape Town City on Wednesday before hosting Kaizer Chiefs on the weekend.
