Johnson not surprised by his charges' manhandling of a hapless City

Cavin Johnson was not surprised by his side’s 4-0 mauling of newly-crowned Telkom Knockout champions Cape Town City on Tuesday night‚ believing his team have not been getting the rewards their recent performances have deserved.

The victory snapped a four-game losing streak for the North West club and eased the pressure on Johnson‚ who had been left frustrated by his side leaking early goals and having to chase games.

Isaac Nhlapo‚ Tintswalo Tshabalala‚ Bongi Ntuli and Ndumiso Mabena all netted for Dikwena in a dominant display that could have seen them victorious by an even greater margin.

For all four it was their first goals of the season‚ with forwards Ntuli and Mabena particularly happy to have broken their duck against a City side who struggled to create any intensity having only arrived back in Cape Town from their Telkom Knockout victory in Polokwane on Sunday.

That aside‚ Johnson is pleased they have finally got reward for his team’s display.

“It’s something that has been happening for a while now‚ he said.

"The only problem is that in the last four games I conceded 10 goals.

"The way we play‚ we have been creating chances and things like that‚ but not putting the ball in the back of the net.

"That’s football‚ we have to understand that.

“We knew we had to work hard at that and we knew we had to plan well for probably the top team in the PSL at the moment.

"Their tails were up‚ it’s always difficult to play in Cape Town‚ you never know with the wind‚ or whether it will rain or snow.”

Stars finished third last season but have struggled to match that form in this campaign having brought through a number of players from their youth ranks.

“Last season and this are two different seasons completely‚” Johnson says.

“We expected this type of good football we would play‚ what we didn’t know is that we would have so many players out injured.

“We had Robert [Ng’ambi] out for two or three games‚ we had Vuyo [Mere] out for two or three games‚ we had [Mbongeni] Mzimela get a red card and then he hurt his wrist.

“We had a number of players that were carrying injuries and then you have to play three games in eight days and it doesn’t do well for the body.

"Those who are not athletes think it is good to play three games in eight days.

"You know what it does? It breaks the body.

“I have got a lot of young players and older players‚ and to blend the two in … the type of league programme we have does not give you that kind of opportunity.”

He says his immediate aim is to stabilise the team’s league position before he can think of another tilt at the top eight.

“I don’t think about the top eight‚ I just want to get out of this hole that I am in now and then we can start talking about other things.”

Next up for Stars is a home game against in-form Maritzburg United on Saturday‚ before they finish their year at fellow strugglers Highlands Park on December 20. - TMG Digital