Pressure mounts against Rhulani Mokwena after Pirates choke

Time is running out for Orlando Pirates caretaker coach Rhulani Mokwena as pressure mounts.

Mokwena seems to be struggling to find a winning formula to steer the Buccaneers’ sinking ship. And the fans are running out of patience, and are starting to doubt his coaching abilities.

Leaking goals seems to be one of Pirates’ Achilles heels as they have now conceded eight in three matches.

French goalkeeper Joris Delle, who was signed by the club in June after his contract was not renewed by Eredivisie side Feyenoord, does not seem to be the answer to their problems. He has conceded seven goals in two matches – three in yesterday’s match and four in their 4-3 drubbing by Bidvest Wits last weekend.

Delle, who made his debut against Chippa United, appears to be the weakest link in the Pirates defence.

However, Pirates and Cape Town City displayed intriguing football yesterday, which proves that the standard in the PSL keeps improving.

Usually in the PSL, when a team leads by two goals, they go all the way and win the match.

It is rare to see teams bouncing back from that scoreline, but since the season started, it seems to be happening more often, with teams on the receiving end bouncing back from a serious deficit to play for a draw or even win the games.

In Orlando yesterday, City were 2-0 up fewer than 10 minutes into the game.

Thabo Nodada scored from outside the penalty box to get his third goal in three matches in the sixth minute.

Kermit Erasmus added the second goal three minutes later. After conceding the second goal, Pirates fans started calling for Delle to be substituted.

Captain Happy Jele led by example when his long-range shot from outside the box went past City goalkeeper Peter Leeuwenburgh to halve the deficit.

On-form forward Tshegofatso Mabasa’s effort on the stroke of half-time sent the noisy home fans wild as he levelled the score heading into the break.

Pirates seemed destined for maximum points after Alfred Ndengane’s 57th-minute goal, but Shane Roberts grabbed a late equaliser for the Citizens with five minutes remaining.

This was a crucial encounter for the two teams as both sides are currently going through a dry spell.

Pirates came into the tie with just one win from their past eight matches, while City have won just once in their seven outings this season.

And all of this has put the coaches, Mokwena and Benni McCarthy under immense pressure as these two teams are expected to be among the season’s title contenders.

The two tacticians are still the students of the game, even though McCarthy, who is a former Pirates striker, is more established because he is in his second season at the help of the Citizens.

Last season, they won the MTN8.

Mokwena will now have a three-week break to work on his side’s shortcomings. They will return to action on October 26, when they visit Stellenbosch FC in Cape Town.

McCarthy will be hoping to turn things around on Tuesday when City face struggling AmaZulu at King Zwelithini Stadium at 7.30pm.

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