Dladla: It’s Just A Matter Of Selection

Durban City held Orlando Pirates to a goalless draw in a Betway Premiership League encounter at the Orlando Amstel Arena on Saturday, in a game where both clubs needed a win for different reasons.

City needed a win to fight for a top-eight position, while Pirates were fighting for the league title, and City Coach Simo Dladla said that they had their tactical behaviour on point in the game.

Check Out: Pirates Loan 'Gamble' Paying Off For Dondolo

Talking to the media after the game, Dladla said that they went into the game with the ambition of remaining in the top eight.

"We had to prepare very well. We had to get our tactical behaviour on point. Like you say, for us, we knew it was going to be a very difficult game, but we are also having ambitions to finish in the Top Eight. So, a point or a win was very, very crucial for us, but the preparations were the same. We did not do anything less or more," Dladla observed.

The Nedbank Cup-winning coach further stated that Darren Keet didn't play because he is retiring.

"For us as a technical team, it is not about anyone retiring. There's nothing that has been official from the management. For us, it's just a matter of selection. (Frederick) Asare is also a very, very good goalkeeper. It's just that he got injured just before the league commenced. But we haven't been told anything official about Darren retiring. It was more about the selection," Dladla said.

In conclusion, Dladla said that he was not actively involved on the bench on Saturday because he was giving the assistant coach and the goalkeeper coach to work with the team.

"Rowen Fernandez is our goalkeeper coach, and Coach Ashraf Hendricks is also one of our coaches, if you know them during their playing days Rowen was playing as a goalkeeper, Ashraf was playing as a defender. Today's game needed more defensive duties, so for them they had to take more control, of which I think they did this very well. Like, we all know that today we've got a point, simply because we defended well. For the commotion to be honest, even if you can check, I think I was concentrating on one player giving instructions. Then when I turned, I saw there was commotion, even now, I’m still gonna ask them what was really happening there," Dladla concluded.

Check Out: Modiba Goal Reopens Khune’s Alves Memories