Als Puk Tawana rookies excite Ted Dumitru
Tawana rookies excite Dumitru
Posted: 2010-04-15 13:04
Als Puk Tawana caretaker coach Ted Dumitru says Platinum Stars were lucky not to go home under an avalanche of goals after his side beat Dinaledi 3-2 at Olen yesterday.
Tawana made their own history to becoming the first Second Division side to beat a PSL team in this year's Nedbank Cup tournament and their coach Dumitru believes that his youngsters are still capable of continuing causing major upsets in the tournament.
Speaking to KickOff.com after the game, a visibly excited Dumitru said his side was not afraid to face any big guns in the next stage of the competition.
"The boys are very excited about this victory tonight and deserve to enjoy the results. I think we should have scored more goals but missed a penalty and on two occasions came face-to-face with the goalkeeper but missed the chances.
"I think the boys are capable of beating any team in PSL and we are ready to face any opposition after the draw on Monday.
"Most of the players were playing in a game of such magnitude for the first time and gained a lot of experience. I think they will continue to grow with experience and I believe they will be a much better team when they play their next match."
The veteran coach adds that though his team advanced to the last 16 of the Nedbank Cup, his focus was not on winning but about promoting the concept of good football in the players.
"It is very misleading for people to look at the results and start making their conclusions. It is not about the result to us and we are concerned about the concept of football. It is about instilling confidence in our players, making them comfortable on the field of play," says Dumitru.
"We do not plan about winning the game or concentrate at our opposition. We just play to our strength and yes we have some high performance training which is in line with overseas programmes. However the focus is not on winning, but on making our players compete against every kind of player, making our size not to count.
"You might have seen when Steve Komphela introduced a big striker thinking he will be able to get something, but our defenders managed to win everything in the air and also on the ground. So that is what we are building in other positions in the middle of the park and also and upfront. Our midfielders should be able to control the midfield and so should our strikers."
The Professor, as Dumitru is known, also says that when these players are promoted, they need to be promoted in a group not as individuals as that will break their momentum.
"There were a lot from the senior team members who were watching the match and they saw what we are doing with the boys. They should also agree that most of these players are technically superior than the most of the first team players. So it would be good to promote these players in a group for example promote a group of more than 10 players at a time. Promoting one player at a time will break their momentum and we do not want to see that happening."
Tawana is the development side for Mamelodi Sundowns and according to the Brazilians caretaker coach Trott Moloto, "This is where Siyanda Xulu comes from and a lot of others will be joining the senior team."
Moloto and his technical team of Alex Bapela, Harris Cheue were all among the spectators at Wednesday's match.
Ernest Fakude and Patrick Zikalala
: 2010-04-15 14:30
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