Orlando Pirates co-coach Fadlu Davids has battled to explain an injury list that has been perplexingly long for an unusually lengthy period.

Davids said Bucs — again been hit by injuries as they have made a battling start to the 2021-22 DStv Premiership — have to trust their squad, and that they will get their fitness situation right.

Currently front-line players Thembinkosi Lorch, Ben Motshwari, Innocent Maela, and Richard Ofori are out for Bucs. In the last year, long-term and or repeated injuries to Zakhele Lepasa and Tshegofatsho Mabasa have especially plagued Pirates upfront, playing a significant part in the struggles of previous coach Josef Zinnbauer.

As the seventh-placed Buccaneers slipped to a fourth match without a win — a defeat and three draws in succession — with their 1-1 stalemate against Royal AM on Thursday Davids was asked if he could explain their consistent injury struggles.

“Look we can’t complain. We’ve got a big enough squad and we have to trust the entire squad,” the co-coach to Mandla Ncikazi said.

“Yes, it’s unusual that last season we had, as an example, Mabasa with a fracture to his one foot. He came back and had the exact same fracture on the opposite foot, came back and again the same fracture on the first foot.

“That just shows really the luck we have had in terms of injuries. Also Lorch missing a big part of last season and having no real strikers available.

“Ja, it’s a little bit unlucky at the moment where you take Maela, Lorch, Ofori — really starting line-up players. Ben Motshwari is out.

“I think any team that has six, seven front-line players unavailable would not be on their best run.

“But we cannot complain. We have to trust, and a clear example is Linda Mntambo. The opportunity is there, he put up his hand, and he’s performing consistently.

“He has to work, he has to improve but that is what we’ve got to do — put our trust in our squad, and that’s exactly what we are doing at the moment.

“Yes the young ones — Simiso Bophela, Boitumelo Radiopane — are all doing well in the MDC [reserve team].

“But it’s an unusual situation. We don’t complain. We move we look forward and we will get it right.”

Attacking midfielder Mntambo scored Pirates’ equaliser and was man-of-the-match against Royal.

Bucs will hope to gain maximum points when they are back at Orlando to host fifth-placed, promoted Sekhukhune United on Tuesday (kickoff 5.30pm).