Mountain to climb for Chiefs
THE biggest challenge that Kaizer Chiefs face in defending their championship might not come from the form of the chasing pack, but rather how their squad copes with the exertions of playing African club competition.
Amakhosi coach Stuart Baxter has already hinted he might rest key players for tomorrow's return leg against Namibia's Black Africa in the preliminary round of the African Champions League.
Chiefs hold a 3-0 lead and should breeze into the next stage, tempting Baxter to leave some big-name players at home to have a weekend off knowing the toils that are still to come.
The Phefeni Glamour Boys have not been helped this year by the CAF choosing to play all the qualifiers and then three full rounds of the group stages before the World Cup.
Orlando Pirates only started their group campaign towards the end of July last year.
It means that should Chiefs make it to the group stages and get to the final of the Nedbank Cup - perhaps two outcomes they would expect - they will have to squeeze in 25 matches between now and May 18.
And that does not include the potential exertions of long travel. Two of their biggest fixtures remaining are away at Pirates next month and home to Mamelodi Sundowns in April. The two matches will come directly after potential matches in the Champions League, though whether those will be home or away is not known at this stage.
And they face a compacted run-in with the final round of PSL matches on May 10 - the same weekend as they would play their second group phase game, with the Nedbank Cup final a week later clashing with their third pool match.
Baxter has an excellent starting XI, but when injuries and suspensions take their toll, the depth of his squad will be severely tested - as it has been already.
The decision to allow Keegan Ritchie to join Czech side Slavia Prague in the recently completed January transfer window was a curious one and has likely already cost the side two points.
To allow Ritchie to leave when Tsepo Masilela is still some weeks away from fitness and never far away from a new niggle to keep him out was risky. This is especially so as the other senior left-back in the squad, Jimmy Jambo, has not played in 18 months as he works his way back from injury, while Simphiwe Mtsweni is a teenage PSL rookie.
It meant a shuffling of the defence, with Siboniso Gaxa moving to the left, where he never looks comfortable, Baxter having to resort to playing 19-year-old Lorenzo Gordinho out of position. But the signing of Katlego Mphela was crucial.