Durban — Speaking to Journalists ahead of his team’s Nedbank Cup Round of 16 clash against Royal AM on Friday night, Swallows coach Dylan Kerr conceded that his team are still getting the basics wrong.
The Dube Birds are just one point clear of the relegation zone in the top-flight. Goalscoring has been a problem for Kerr’s side this season as they have only scored 16 top-flight goals while conceding 30.
“We can’t switch on and off. When we get into wide positions, we make the wrong decisions. When we do make the right decisions and get the right cross in, we don’t get the right shot in even though we are 10 metres from goal. This was exactly why we lost against Royal AM last week. Credit to Royal AM but we have to bury these games. We did it against Golden Arrows, Stellenbosch, Orlando Pirates and Cape Town City,” said Kerr.
The Dube Birds looked set to hold Royal AM to a draw in Durban last weekend before veteran Elias Pelembe rolled back the years to snatch victory with virtually the last kick of the game for John Maduka’s side. Swallows will be looking for revenge in the Nedbank Cup against Royal AM, especially as the game will be played in their home fortress of the Dobsonville Stadium this time around.
Kerr is also the defending coach of the Nedbank Cup, having won the tournament last season with Marumo Gallants.
Kerr maintains that his team’s main focus at this stage of the campaign will be on retaining their top-flight status. However, he also knows that the Nedbank Cup presents them with a good opportunity to surprise people.
“We want to be in the top-flight but this cup is a great opportunity. Many players in our team haven’t won a trophy and this presents them with an opportunity to imprint their names in history. The priority is on the league but I’d also like to win this trophy. It is the biggest trophy in South Africa, no disrespect to the Compact Cup and MTN 8. This tournament is the equivalent to the English FA Cup,” said Kerr.
Kerr believes that his side needs to approach Royal AM without fear.
“Our players were dejected after what they did as a unit. We have to see how we are going to win the game. Sadly, we were caught at the death. We are in the bottom three and have wasted 24 points since I arrived at the club. We haven’t had luck in front of goal,” he said.
IOL Sport