Even though Shamiriri FC did not start out strong, they celebrated their 3-2 victory against People’s Team at the Sekhukhune Sports Ground in Winnie Mandela Zone 8 on January 26.
People’s Team enjoyed a swift 1-0, dominating the first half of the match and got a goal in their favour. Coming into the second half, Pontsho Mosheudo of People’s Team extended Kopral Mohatle’s goal into a 2-0 lead. Shamiriri FC had to battle in the remaining 30 minutes to get at least an equaliser to force the game into extra time or penalty shoot-outs.
During that remaining time, Shamiriri FC pulled the unexpected and scored three goals to claim the victory. They walked away with R3 500 that will be used for the benefit of the team.
People’s Team assistant coach Levious Makelana said they wanted to keep the momentum going to get an insurance goal and make it 2-0 on the scoreboard.
“The opposition penetrated us using their wingers, throwing crosses into the 18 box area. They created trouble for us, so we tried closing that gap in the second half and got another early goal to make it 2-0.
“We did not see much of a threat because we kept our composure and executed our game plan. Unfortunately, we lost the match due to silly mistakes,” said Makelana.
Believe Lebea, Shamiriri FC coach, said he knew the team had to do more than the usual to stand a chance of winning the game, but first, they had to maintain their position, strengthen their defence and move in cohesion.
“Once united, we could push for a win because we have the experience and ability to do so. So in the second half, things had to change, including the players’ attitude towards the game.
“The second half started very slow, but we got back to the game when we got our first goal. After we had equalised we knew we had nothing more to loose so we pushed to get another goal. Lucky enough the opposition was getting tired and lost a minute of concentration that we capitalised on,” Lebea said.
