Ahead of their match against Marumo Gallants at Chatsworth Stadium today at 5pm, Matlaba said they can’t afford to get carried away by their recent run as they look to finish second on the table.
“To be honest, we need to be humbled and not take any team for granted. Because if we take them for granted, we will lose games,” Matlaba told the club media department.
“That’s why we are so focused. The coach [John Maduka] always tells us to be focused and take every game as important and serious.
“What I can promise the fans is, we will finish second on the log because we are working hard and we don’t want to lose any game. Every match we play, we are going to win and we are not playing for a draw. That’s why we need to win every game.”
Meanwhile, Maduka, whose side comes into this fixture on the back of a 4-1 emphatic win over TS Galaxy in their last match, expects a difficult game against Gallants.
“They are a good team and for us, it is back-to-back games and it is very important to manage the players to be fresh for this match,” Maduka said.
“We are playing at home with no excuse. We must go and compete to try and get the points that we need.
“Away from home is not easy, so when we play at home, we must try as much as we can to win the game.”
Maduka added that they will have a plan to stop Gallants from having ball possession as he feels that has been one of their strengths.
“We know them. They use the ball well, so we have to match them and we will put up a good team that will be able to compete against them,” he said.
Matlaba urges his Royal teammates to stay focused
Durban side welcome unpredictable Gallants
Royal AM defender Thabo Matlaba has urged his teammates to remain humble following an impressive run in the DStv Premiership and the Nedbank Cup.
The Durban-based side are one of the form teams as they are unbeaten in eight matches.
Ahead of their match against Marumo Gallants at Chatsworth Stadium today at 5pm, Matlaba said they can’t afford to get carried away by their recent run as they look to finish second on the table.
“To be honest, we need to be humbled and not take any team for granted. Because if we take them for granted, we will lose games,” Matlaba told the club media department.
“That’s why we are so focused. The coach [John Maduka] always tells us to be focused and take every game as important and serious.
“What I can promise the fans is, we will finish second on the log because we are working hard and we don’t want to lose any game. Every match we play, we are going to win and we are not playing for a draw. That’s why we need to win every game.”
Meanwhile, Maduka, whose side comes into this fixture on the back of a 4-1 emphatic win over TS Galaxy in their last match, expects a difficult game against Gallants.
“They are a good team and for us, it is back-to-back games and it is very important to manage the players to be fresh for this match,” Maduka said.
“We are playing at home with no excuse. We must go and compete to try and get the points that we need.
“Away from home is not easy, so when we play at home, we must try as much as we can to win the game.”
Maduka added that they will have a plan to stop Gallants from having ball possession as he feels that has been one of their strengths.
“We know them. They use the ball well, so we have to match them and we will put up a good team that will be able to compete against them,” he said.