LAMONTVILLE Golden Arrows head coach Manqoba Mngqithi believes the Nedbank Cup has become even more unpredictable following the early exits of some of the country’s traditional football giants.
The competition has produced a number of surprises this season, with Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns all falling before the quarter-final stage.
Their absence has left the tournament wide open, with Arrows, AmaZulu FC, Durban City FC, Sekhukhune United and TS Galaxy among the Betway Premiership clubs still in contention for the trophy.
Arrows will host Durban City FC in their quarter-final clash on Sunday at King Zwelithini Stadium, a fixture that Mngqithi expects to be anything but straightforward.
Speaking at the Nedbank Cup press conference on Friday, the experienced tactician dismissed suggestions that the competition might be easier now that several of the country’s biggest teams have been knocked out.
“Any cup competition is always up for grabs for us, I never look at it from a perspective of whether the big teams are there or not because sometimes the big ones are even easier and cause less stress as compared to the ones people think you’re entitled to win,” he said.
“These teams are taken for granted but usually that’s when you have to put a lot of thorough planning in making sure you overcome them.”
Mngqithi explained that matches against the league’s biggest sides often bring a natural motivation for players, whereas facing less-fancied opponents requires a different type of mental preparation.
“With the more ‘bigger’ opponents, you know players are already motivated for them to deliver an A-game,” he added.
Arrows’ opponents, Durban City FC, have impressed this season despite undergoing changes in the technical team during the campaign.
The premiership debutants began the campaign with Gavin Hunt, sacked him in December and roped in Sinethemba Badela, who was then let go after three games in charges, placing Pitso Dladla as an interim coach.
Mngqithi believes their early preparations and recruitment strategy have played a key role in their strong performances.
“They’ve had a very good pre-season with Gavin (Hunt), we played about two games with them in pre-season,” he said.
“I also think they recruited quite well. The players that are featuring currently are a good mix of senior players and youngsters and the ones they got promoted with have been strong as well.”
With a place in the semifinals at stake, Mngqithi’s warning was clear: in knockout football, reputation means little, and underestimating opponents can quickly end a cup dream.
