Coaches pleased with CBLC
Both
Augusto Palacios and Stuart Baxter believe the Carling Black Label Cup was a
good run-out for their sides on Saturday night.
Almost
93 000 fans packed Soccer City to see the Soweto Derby between Orlando
Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, with the starting line-ups selected by the
respective club’s supporters.
Pirates
won a penalty shoot-out 5-4 after the teams had played to a 1-1 draw, and
although they had no hand in the starting line-ups, both coaches felt the
exercise was well worth it as they prepare for the MTN8 this weekend.
“When
we returned for pre-season, I told my players to forget about winning the
treble and that we needed to start afresh and focus on the next trophy,” Pirates
coach Palacios says. “We want to win everything and this is the perfect start.
We had a strong team out there that was chosen by our fans, and players like
[Sifiso] Myeni and Mark [Mayambela] had a chance to show that they deserve to
wear the Pirates shirt.
“For
us it was very good preparation for the new season and for the fans it was a
very good day out that I believe they enjoyed,” Palacios concluded.
His
opposite number at Chiefs, Baxter, was also pleased that some of the players
who did not get to see regular action last season got a run-out in such a
prestigious match.
“I
think there was a lot of pride between the two teams. I was pleased to see
that,” Baxter says. “If you look at the starting XI, there were a couple of
choices made by the supporters who had an opportunity to stake a claim. Abia
[Nale] did well, especially offensively. [Tefu] Mashamaite settled in well.
They obviously staked a claim for a more regular starting position and in a
sense raised their shares, if I can put it that way.”
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