EC Bees will once again have the chance to qualify for the last 32 stage of the Nedbank Cup after reaching the final qualifying round for the third year in a row.
Bees have made it to the last 32 stage of the competition the last two years and are now odds-on to repeat that feat after they beat Matta Milan this past Saturday.
That means Bees need just one more win to qualify, which will be against the winner of the SAB League regional playoffs that are set to take place in early December.
Their mentor Chippa Njedu said this time around they were not eager to play against top teams in the Premier Soccer League so they could stand a chance to finish in a much better position than they closed in last year.
“We don’t want to play big teams for now because we want to proceed to the next level and not only play in the last 32. Going into last 16 or even the top eight would great for us,” said Njedu.
“So if we would get a team from Castle or National First Division that would help us a lot so we can steal some points and proceed.”
Njedu said there were a lot of things his team could learn if they were to go further in the tournament rather than only making headlines.
After their hard-fought victory against Matta Milan, Njedu admitted that his new team was not as strong as the one he mentored last season missing the likes of the departed Siyabonga “Raiza” Booi.
“We just need to trust ourselves and go in there with high spirits and maintain our discipline. We just need to respect everyone we play against and coaches, then we’ll continue to see ourselves grow every time we play,” said Njedu.
“Because we don’t judge against anyone – that will give us the upper hand we need as long as we work hard. It’s very common in football that coaches overlook smaller teams and they often deceive themselves in the process and I want to guard against that – misleading my team.”
He continued: “For instance, we have young blood in the team now but they can win games like their predecessors. So motivating them and keeping a clear head is what we doing to make sure they deliver the desired results.”
There was an uproar among teams who lost against Bees in the preliminary stage of the Nedbank Cup over poor officiating. But Njedu laughed off the allegations.
“If my team loses – regardless of what happened on the field – I never complain about match officials, because I will never be able to fix my team’s problems if every time I lose I blame referees,” he said.
“If I did that I would be directing my focus at the wrong place which is at referees.
“Our coaches can’t just accept a loss and it’s happening all over the country and I think we as coaches should forget about referees and that would help our own teams.”
Bees fired to use their sting again
Bees have made it to the last 32 stage of the competition the last two years and are now odds-on to repeat that feat after they beat Matta Milan this past Saturday.
That means Bees need just one more win to qualify, which will be against the winner of the SAB League regional playoffs that are set to take place in early December.
Their mentor Chippa Njedu said this time around they were not eager to play against top teams in the Premier Soccer League so they could stand a chance to finish in a much better position than they closed in last year.
“We don’t want to play big teams for now because we want to proceed to the next level and not only play in the last 32. Going into last 16 or even the top eight would great for us,” said Njedu.
“So if we would get a team from Castle or National First Division that would help us a lot so we can steal some points and proceed.”
Njedu said there were a lot of things his team could learn if they were to go further in the tournament rather than only making headlines.
After their hard-fought victory against Matta Milan, Njedu admitted that his new team was not as strong as the one he mentored last season missing the likes of the departed Siyabonga “Raiza” Booi.
“We just need to trust ourselves and go in there with high spirits and maintain our discipline. We just need to respect everyone we play against and coaches, then we’ll continue to see ourselves grow every time we play,” said Njedu.
“Because we don’t judge against anyone – that will give us the upper hand we need as long as we work hard. It’s very common in football that coaches overlook smaller teams and they often deceive themselves in the process and I want to guard against that – misleading my team.”
He continued: “For instance, we have young blood in the team now but they can win games like their predecessors. So motivating them and keeping a clear head is what we doing to make sure they deliver the desired results.”
There was an uproar among teams who lost against Bees in the preliminary stage of the Nedbank Cup over poor officiating. But Njedu laughed off the allegations.
“If my team loses – regardless of what happened on the field – I never complain about match officials, because I will never be able to fix my team’s problems if every time I lose I blame referees,” he said.
“If I did that I would be directing my focus at the wrong place which is at referees.
“Our coaches can’t just accept a loss and it’s happening all over the country and I think we as coaches should forget about referees and that would help our own teams.”
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