Durban City coach Pitso Dladla.
Image: Backpagepix
Durban City coach Pitso Dladla said slipping out the Betway Premiership Top 8 in the league is a real concern for them at the moment.
After cruising in the top half of the table, the KwaZulu-Natal side are on a four-match winless run following Friday night's 1-1 draw against Orbit College.
In cold, wet conditions, Durban City started on the back foot and had to fight their way back into the game — an unusual sight for them at home in Chatsworth. A couple of yellow cards for key figures like Terrence Mashego and Kyle Jurgens forced Dladla to substiture the two players because "it got physical".
Coming out of three straight losses, the draw on Friday night felt like a breath of fresh air but was still not the result they would have hoped for. Polokwane City is in prime position to swoop in on Durban's sixth position, which they have held for some time. Golden Arrows could also be a threat to their position, but the two games in hand for Polokwane give them the better chance.
As for Dladla, he is concerned.
"That's a valid concern for us at the moment because we have been in sixth place for the longest time and we want to cement that spot. But coming from three defeats sometimes, it will take time. It's not easy to go straight to a victory after those defeats.
"So this point means a lot to us. We can build from here; our players and technical team can draw confidence from this tonight," Dladla said.
"I think the boys put in a very good fight. The game became very physical at some point and I think was characterised by a lot of aerial balls. We were concerned with their keeper because he kicked it long, which pushed us back. They scored, we equalised, and then we fought for a bit. Maseko got in brilliantly behind the defence but their keeper again played a big part and made the save which kept us from going 2-1 up," he explained.
The hints of confidence Durban extracted at Chatsworth Stadium will go a long way for their biggest match of the season on Saturday — the Nedbank Cup final. Durban travel to Polokwane to take on TS Galaxy and hopefully lift their first piece of serious silverware.
It is a trophy that could not only put their names in the history books but also give them some late-season fuel to finish the next four games strong and secure their place in the MTN8 next season.
Jehran Naidoo is sports reporter for Independent Media and social media coordinator of the our YouTube channel The Clutch.