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Chiefs and Pirates derby special – Baxter
Amakhosi and Bucs head into the derby in third and fourth place, equal on 32 points, 19 behind log-leaders Sundowns.
Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs will battle out for Soweto bragging rights at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Kickoff is 15:30pm Picture: Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix
With Mamelodi Sundowns’ dominance currently in the DStv Premiership, many might feel the Soweto derby between Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates has fallen off the radar.
But, to Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter, that is not the case looking back at where the two clubs come from.
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The Brazilians currently top the league standings with a massive 51 points from 22 games, while Amakhosi and Bucs come in third and fourth place, equal on 32 points, with the gap between the Pretoria side and the two Soweto sides being a huge 19 as we head towards the end of the season.
With that in mind and Chiefs and Bucs about to clash for their second meeting this season at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday, Baxter says that the game between the two South African giants of football is not only about three points, but it is beyond that.
“Somebody said to me the derby might be water down because Sundowns is on top of the league table, but I don’t accept that. Because if you ask our supporters, if you ask Pirates supporters, the sponsors. If you ask anybody involved with each football club, it is not about bragging rights or three points. Its history, its prestige and makes it much more special than a normal game,” Baxter explained.
For that reason, Baxter goes on to reveal that it is the reason why he and his charges have been working so hard at training to make sure that they end up on the winning side on the day.
“So, for all those aspects, we have been working really hard. And as we move closer to the game, the focus is on being able to come to the game in the right frame of mind so we give a good performance.”
