The kind of joy displayed by Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro was easy to understand after the Spaniard led the Buccaneers to a 1-0 win over AmaZulu in the MTN8 final at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday evening.
A 25th minute free kick by Monnapule Saleng, which sailed past always-trusted AmaZulu goalkeeper Veli Mothwa earned Pirates the R8 million winner’s cheque. Pirates have won four of the six MTN8 finals they featured in.
“This is pure happiness, there is nothing like winning. It was a difficult game. The last two weeks were not easy for us for many different reasons,” the 47-year-old Riveiro remarked.
“We showed that we were mentally strong. They are a very good team, well organised with good ideas. We knew we would have problems with the long balls, but we did a good job. It was a beautiful goal that made the difference. We did not want to lose the lead. We stopped playing a bit, but we can improve this in the future to dominate scenarios like these. I am a lucky coach to work with a group of players like this.”
Next up for Pirates is a Black Label Carling Cup match against Kaizer Chiefs at the FNB Stadium in Nasrec, Johannesburg, on Saturday.
Meanwhile, AmaZulu coach Romain Folz refused to believe that Pirates were above them during the match as Usuthu’s search for their first trophy since the 1992 continues. Usuthu last won a trophy when they beat Kaizer Chiefs 3-1 in the final of the 1992 Coca-Cola Cup.
“I think we were very inactive in the first half, lacking moments on the ball. Our intensity was very low. I wouldn’t say Pirates were that much than us. They got many free kicks and used one of them well. Second half was better, our intensity was much better, the ball was released much quicker. It allowed us more chances. But unfortunately we couldn’t score.I would say a draw would have been a fair result. If we did better in the first half, it would have been a different outcome. It’s always easy to come after the game to say we should have done this or that, but I have no regrets with who I chose to start the game,” he said.
Usuthu will now start preparing for their Carling Black Label Cup match against Mamelodi Sundowns scheduled for the FNB Stadium next Saturday.
