Pirates have qualified to play in the 2015 CAF Confederation Cup Final after beating Egyptian giants Al Ahly 5-3 on aggregate following a 4-3 win in Suez on Sunday night.
The Mighty Buccaneers are now set to meet Tunisian side Etoile du Sahel over two legs in the Final, with the first leg at home on 21 November.
Tinkler has hailed his squad for sticking together and staying united despite the enormous challenges of travelling throughout their African campaign so far.
“I think it’s all about mindset. Our preparations throughout this competition have been very good and unity has been extremely important when we've gone on these kinds of trips,” said Tinkler after his team arrived at OR Tambo on Tuesday.
“I don't think people appreciate how difficult these trips are. It’s not like in Europe where you can travel from England to Russia, which can be three hours. It takes us sometimes two days to reach our destination. I don't think people appreciate how difficult that is.
“I think it’s also the mental aspect that you’ve got to prepare yourself for what you’re going to confront. If you can do that and put all of that aside and just focus purely on what the objective is, which is to go there to get three points, you can get yourself to the next phase of the competition.
“I think we have done that and that has been very important but particularly with regards to preparation for each game, obviously the unity we have shown as a group [has been as important].”