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The team talk at halftime seemed to have made the difference, as Amakhosi fought back with two goals to win the Cup tie.
After a two-half game in which there were positives and negatives, new Kaizer Chiefs coach Gavin Hunt began his tenure with a winning start when his team beat Maritzburg United 2-1 in a quarterfinal clash. MTN8 finale at FNB Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
It should be noted, before too much is read about this result, that Hunt ran out of half a team of potential first-choice players (due to injury and suspension), including influential forwards Samir Nurkovic, Lebogang Manyama, Dumisani Zuma, as well. like Eric Mathoho and Willard Katsande.
Leonardo Castro, for his part, was not quite in shape and started on the bench. The former Bidvest Wits mentor also only had two and a half weeks of preparation with his new players.
However, there were several highlights of the game.
Bad start
“I think in the first half we were still on the bus,” Hunt told SuperSport after the game, in what was a great recap of the Chiefs’ performance in the first 45 minutes.
It was certainly a nervous-looking Amakhosi team that participated in the opening stanza.
And the first half couldn’t have been much worse, although the Chiefs were lucky to be 1-0 down after the KwaZulu-Natal team hit the crossbar through Bongokuhle Hlongwane shortly after Thabiso Kutumela scored the first goal. .
Moving forward in attack, the Chiefs seemed disjointed and purposeless, while in the back, the home defense was regularly out of shape and exposed by the Maritzburg attackers.
Positive signs
Everything changed after the break, and Hunt’s two substitutes, Njabulo Blom and Castro, made a significant impact by demonstrating their tactical talents.
There was also a substantial increase in focus and intensity from Soweto’s side, likely as a result of team talk at halftime.
The fact that Hunt could get such a reaction from his men was probably the highlight of the day. Character, fighting spirit and unity augur well for the season.
It was also crucial in terms of ending last season’s bitter disappointment of losing the league title on the final day. Imagine how morale would have plummeted if Amakhosi had started the new season by being knocked out of the cup.
For Hunt, it was the mental toughness his men displayed that was most satisfying and he will hope that with time and more training his side will solidify and go from strength to strength as the systems are implemented.
“I take mentality, attitude [from the game]Hunt concluded. There is nothing to highlight [in terms of] prettiness. I will try to instill that attitude in the team. “
