Kaizer Chiefs trainer Gavin Hunt has attributed their mediocre goal return to below-par execution when they get chances, insisting the problem had nothing to do with low confidence.
Strikers Samir Nurkovic and Leonardo Castro fired blanks as Chiefs’ bluntness in front of goal saw them crash out of the Nedbank Cup at the expense of second tier’s Richards Bay, who claimed a 2-1 win in the tournament’s first round at FNB Stadium at the weekend.
Castro may have netted what eventually proved a mere consolation off the bench, but the Colombian attacker squandered a few scoring opportunities. Nurkovic was also not ruthless enough. The Natal Rich Boyz scored via Thabani Dube and Siyabonga Vilane.
“I think it’s more about the technique of the actual execution. I mean Castro missed one [glorious chance], I don’t know how he missed that header from under the cross bar… I mean you just have to tap it in, so that was obviously the biggest miss of the day,’’ said Hunt.
“I think they cleared one or two from the line, but it was more about the execution of the technique. It has nothing to do with confidence, it's about making right decision when you get around there [near goal posts].’’
The Amakhosi mentor also gave fringe left-back Siphosakhe Ntiya-Ntiya a lot of stick for his red card four minutes into the hour-mark. Hunt feels playing with 10 men disadvantaged them.
“It looked like it was a foul, there’s no doubt about it. When the ball was lost we were caught on the wrong side, so that’s the first problem but you know when you’re on a yellow card that you can’t make those sorts of tackles. It put us on the back foot.’’
Hunt admitted the Richards Bay defeat was a low-light of in his coaching career. Nevertheless, the former SuperSport United and Bidvest Wits coach has since put the agony behind him, focusing on Saturday’s CAF Champions League Group C opener away to Moroccan heavyweights Wydad Casablanca.
“This is my biggest [defeat] in 26, 27 years. You go from one extreme to the other extreme. You go to playing against Champions League finalists, from the last two years, to playing against a first division team, so it’s huge,’’ Hunt said.
“We know it is going to be tough task, but we will go there with a positive mindset and set the team out.’’
Chiefs coach castigates strikers for missing chances
Hunt bemoans poor finishing against Bay
Image: Gerhard Duraan/BackpagePix
Kaizer Chiefs trainer Gavin Hunt has attributed their mediocre goal return to below-par execution when they get chances, insisting the problem had nothing to do with low confidence.
Strikers Samir Nurkovic and Leonardo Castro fired blanks as Chiefs’ bluntness in front of goal saw them crash out of the Nedbank Cup at the expense of second tier’s Richards Bay, who claimed a 2-1 win in the tournament’s first round at FNB Stadium at the weekend.
Castro may have netted what eventually proved a mere consolation off the bench, but the Colombian attacker squandered a few scoring opportunities. Nurkovic was also not ruthless enough. The Natal Rich Boyz scored via Thabani Dube and Siyabonga Vilane.
“I think it’s more about the technique of the actual execution. I mean Castro missed one [glorious chance], I don’t know how he missed that header from under the cross bar… I mean you just have to tap it in, so that was obviously the biggest miss of the day,’’ said Hunt.
“I think they cleared one or two from the line, but it was more about the execution of the technique. It has nothing to do with confidence, it's about making right decision when you get around there [near goal posts].’’
The Amakhosi mentor also gave fringe left-back Siphosakhe Ntiya-Ntiya a lot of stick for his red card four minutes into the hour-mark. Hunt feels playing with 10 men disadvantaged them.
“It looked like it was a foul, there’s no doubt about it. When the ball was lost we were caught on the wrong side, so that’s the first problem but you know when you’re on a yellow card that you can’t make those sorts of tackles. It put us on the back foot.’’
Hunt admitted the Richards Bay defeat was a low-light of in his coaching career. Nevertheless, the former SuperSport United and Bidvest Wits coach has since put the agony behind him, focusing on Saturday’s CAF Champions League Group C opener away to Moroccan heavyweights Wydad Casablanca.
“This is my biggest [defeat] in 26, 27 years. You go from one extreme to the other extreme. You go to playing against Champions League finalists, from the last two years, to playing against a first division team, so it’s huge,’’ Hunt said.
“We know it is going to be tough task, but we will go there with a positive mindset and set the team out.’’
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