Matchday 2 - preview
Amazulu FC - Thanda Royal Zulu FC
DURBAN, September 27 (Absa Premier League) – Thanda Royal Zulu head into their Absa Premier League clash against Amazulu on Sunday in unfamiliar territory following their 100% start to the new season.
Back-to-back 2-1 victories over Kaizer Chiefs and Bloemfontein Celtic respectively, mean the Amabhubesi are in third place on the table and one of only two teams with maximum points from their opening two games – the other being Supersport United.
Despite their strong start, assistant coach Johan Eriksson has reassured everyone that our boys are not getting too carried away and remain level-headed in the build-up to what is in effect a local derby.
“I think that they do have confidence, but it’s much better in contrast to last season when we were lacking in confidence because of the poor results,” said Eriksson.
“This season, we’re prepared, we’ve worked hard and now we also have the good results, which basically tells the boys the way we train is good.
“So I think it’s a good thing. I haven’t seen any signs of them getting lazy or anything like that. Actually, the contrary is happening, they want to work harder now. They like it up there and they want to stay up there – it’s a good atmosphere.”
Assessing our chances ahead of the clash at the Princess Magogo Stadium, the Swede added: “We’re looking good, we have a strong team and we are highly motivated. We’ve been beaten the past three times in overtime by Amazulu and we didn’t like it.
“There’s definitely a little bit of rivalry there and it’s a local derby as well, which always adds a little extra.”
The only injury concerns for Thanda are Norman Smith (ankle) and Katlego Loke (thigh), who both miss out.
Amazulu on the other hand have a clean bill of health to report with Japhet Zwane (foot) and Sanele Majola (ankle) facing late fitness tests.
However, it has been a tough two weeks for the Usuthu following the sudden death of 27-year-old striker Siyabonga Mkhwanazi.
Amazulu technical manager Neil Tovey said: “I think the team has passed its respects for Benni, and they’ve had a week now where they’ve knuckled down to training and to concentrate on this weekend’s match.
“They (Thanda) had a really good start to the season. We’ve played them in friendlies, so they know what we are about, we know what they’re about and local derbies are always difficult games. But we’ll be prepared.”