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Stellenbosch FC’s fixture against Jomo Cosmos in Tembisa today will mark the NFD log leaders’ last trip outside Cape Town this campaign.
Stellies coach Steve Barker has already counted on this as an advantage in the team’s final push for automatic promotion, with five games to go. But first he is hoping to close in on the 50-point mark in the fixture at Makhulong Stadium this afternoon.
The 51-year-old believes this haul will keep them well on track to realise their dream of campaigning in the Absa Premiership next season.
The 50-point tally has in past seasons proven to be the magical number for teams harbouring hopes of promotion, including securing a spot in the sought-after play-offs for second- and third-placed team sides.
While three more wins out of their remaining five matches could give Stellies an unassailable lead, Barker warned against counting chickens before they hatch.
“We don’t really need that. We must just get to 51 points by Sunday,” said the little-heralded mentor who guided AmaTuks (University of Pretoria) to the premier division in 2012.
“After that, there won’t be any travelling as we’ll remain in Cape Town for all our remaining games,” he added.
He was referring to the three home games at Idas Valley Sports Ground that still lie ahead, as well as the derby against city rivals Cape Umoya United at Athlone Stadium.
After the Cosmos match, Stellies will face Uthongathi FC on Saturday; TS Galaxy on April 20; Cape Umoya United on April 28 and Maccabi FC on May 5.
Stellenbosch avoided what would have been a serious meltdown had they dropped further points last weekend. However, they managed a turnaround, which was aided by their competitors failing to take advantage.
The club from the winelands district demolished AmaTuks 5-0 last weekend after back-to-back losses to bottom-dwellers Real Kings and Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila, as well as a draw to another struggling team, Witbank Spurs.
On the same weekend, chasers Ajax Cape Town and Real Eagles yielded a goalless stalemate, while Mbombela United were held to a 1-1 draw by TS Galaxy.
“We needed to get back to winning ways and regain our confidence, and also get the momentum going,” said Barker.
He said he was anticipating an “exciting match” against Cosmos, based on the first-round encounter in November that produced a five-goal thriller won 3-2 by Stellenbosch.
“If you face a team like Cosmos, you must be well prepared. They are not comfortable on the log. They were probably unlucky not to equalise at the end,” recalled Barker of the league clash at Idas Valley Sports Ground.
Cosmos’ owner-coach Jomo Sono told City Press recently that his side were only focused on retaining their first division status this season. He cited rebuilding the team from scratch as the reason for them being on the lower rungs of the table.
Ezenkosi were fourth from the bottom prior to this weekend’s NFD fixtures, in contrast to Stellies’ five-point lead at the top.
