Lechesa confident Leopards will avoid relegation

LIMPOPO – Black Leopards coach Duncan Lechesa remains confident that his team will avoid relegation despite a shaky start to the season.

His comments came after Leopards’ 1–1 draw against Milford FC in their Motsepe Foundation Championship League match on Saturday.

“We had to make sure that we killed the game early in the first half so that when they tried to come back we would at least have a two-goal cushion.

“That would have been the best scenario because we know national first division teams are hard-running teams and they always want it more, and that showed in our game.”

Lechesa admitted he was not entirely satisfied with either the result or his team’s performance.

“Obviously I’m not happy with the result and also with the way we played. I think we started well, dominated the game and scored.

“But after they equalised at a crucial moment, we allowed Milford to come back into the game and they started to play,” he said.

“I told the players to be aware and alert when we went back for the second half, and to be careful during critical moments because those are very important in a game.”

Lechesa, who took over the team last month alongside co-coach Sundra Govinder, credited the team’s recent improvement to motivation and boosting the players’ morale.

“The first thing I did was to inspire the players to believe in themselves,” he said.

The Leopards mentor also highlighted the squad’s talent and indicated that reinforcing the team with experienced players would be a priority in upcoming discussions with management.

Leopards will host Leruma United FC at the Thohoyandou Stadium on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Venda Football Club head coach Clinton Larsen said his team was leaving no stone unturned in preparation for their crucial matches.

He admitted that defeating University of Pretoria FC would be a tough challenge when they face them on Sunday.