Baroka lose 2nd match in a row

BAROKA FC head coach, Sello Chokoe said he had given up on the dream of gaining outright promotion to the Premier Soccer League or reaching the play-offs this season.

Chokoe was reacting after Baroka lost their second consecutive match when they went down 1-0 against Cape Town All Stars, thanks to Zaid Patel’s first minute goal last Wednesday.

On Sunday, Skorokoro, as Chokoe is known in football circles, watched in agony as the team conceded goals in the first minute of the game, and the day went from bad to worse when Kuduku Maleasenya got his marching orders in the first half for a second bookable offence.

Chokoe said the loss kicked them out of league contention.

“I give up on the dream of gaining promotion this year. I don’t think we will even reach the play-offs because at the rate we are going, we will have to fight for survival in the National First Division (NFD). We are learning the ropes but in a very hard way. The majority of our players are from the lower divisions and are bound to make schoolboy mistakes. As Baroka, we are a realistic team and we are now starting to rebuild for the next season,” a disappointed Chokoe said.

After the match on Sunday, Chokoe was locked in a lengthy meeting with club boss, Khurishi Mphahlele.

Asked what the meeting was about, Chokoe said it was nothing serious. “We discussed the red card and what we must do going forward. We all understand that most of our players are new in the division and will take time to acclimatise with demands of the NFD. There was nothing sinister and we will keep on motivating our boys and support them,” continued Chokoe.

Cape Town All Stars coach, Boebie Solomons, who coached Polokwane City FC last season, said he knew Baroka very well and he planned for them accordingly.

“We played economical football and that secured three points for us. We are getting better with every game we play, and winning away from home is always a nice feeling,” said Solomons.