AmaZulu coach Arthur Zwane has sounded the alarm to his side after a lacklustre 1-0 Betway Premiership win over struggling Marumo Gallants at the Princess Magogo Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
A victory in their sixth league outing took Usuthu to 13 points, level with defending champions Orlando Pirates, who have played a match less.
That leaves both teams seven points behind African champions Mamelodi Sundowns, who played their eighth league match when they snatched a last-minute draw at Chippa United.
The normal thing for Zwane would have been to celebrate collecting another three points to stay on the heels of the leading pack, but he warned his players not to drop their standards as the league progresses.
“Instead of applying ourselves correctly, being sharp, and imposing ourselves, we actually slowed down and allowed the opposition to dictate terms here and there,” lamented Zwane after the match.
“I must honestly give credit to the players for grinding out the result, but I know we could have done better. We set ourselves standards in terms of performance, and this is one performance we want to quickly forget about. On a positive note, though, we have to make sure that we continue where we left off in terms of winning games.”
Zwane is right to caution his side against complacency, for they are only keeping pace so far due to Zimbabwean striker Thandolwenkosi Ngwenya’s rich vein of form in front of goal.
It was the August PSL Player of the Month who found the net yet again on Saturday, scoring his seventh league goal of the season.
“We had great moments that we could’ve capitalised on to add to the scoreline. I cannot fault the effort of the players because at the end of the day, the target was to get maximum points, but I don’t want us to drop our standards. We have to make life difficult for any opposition when they come to AmaZulu,” said Zwane.
The introspection was not only reserved for the players, but for the coaching staff as well.
“Regarding the problem that you saw here today, we can’t only blame the players. It could be at training or anywhere else where the problems start. Even we as coaches have to check ourselves in terms of, ‘What have we done differently this past week? Why did the energy levels drop so drastically during the game?’ as we were just out of character today.”
Zwane is right in his assessment of the match, for had they not been facing a side that is winless (four losses and two draws in six outings), things could have panned out differently for the Durbanites.
After firing coach Phuti Mohafe midweek, Gallants were coached by 37-year-old Matome Mathiane, the club’s recently retired centre-back.
Next for AmaZulu are Polokwane City, while Gallants host Pirates next weekend.
