Why Pirates' Ncikazi believes Chiefs are favourites to win Nedbank Cup

Martin T
1 day ago
2 min read

Orlando Pirates assistant coach Mandla Ncikazi has surprisingly stated why he believes Kaizer Chiefs hold the edge going into the much-anticipated Nedbank Cup final showdown.

Chiefs and Pirates will lock horns at the 2010 FIFA World Cup venue - Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, on Saturday afternoon, with the Soweto Derby bragging rights and Nedbank title at stake.

The clash comes just days after Pirates snatched a narrow 2-1 victory over Chiefs in a hard-fought Betway Premiership encounter.

However, despite their recent league triumph, Pirates assistant coach Ncikazi downplayed his side's favourite tag during Wednesday's pre-final press conference in Durban.

He dismissed the notion based on their congested schedule this season and the distant memory of Amakhosi's 2014 MTN8 final victory.

Ncikazi also pointed to Chiefs' fresher legs as they were last in action on Saturday, contrasting with Pirates' midweek fixture.

“We know we are playing against a very good team, Kaizer Chiefs,” said Ncikazi. “The history of the two teams says they’ve played 23 times since the inception of this competition [Nedbank Cup]. We’ve won it 10 times; they’ve won it 13 times.

“They’ve scored 14 goals in the Nedbank Cup this season. I think they are the top scorers; they’ve only conceded two, so it won’t be an easy match, but as usual, we will play this match to try and win.

“Please allow me to make a small correction, we are not favourites. Being a favourite is a very subjective matter. It depends on how you look at it.

“One, Chiefs were the last winners in a cup final that we last played between both teams. Secondly, Chiefs are a well-rested team if you look at how many games we have played. We have played 48 games, and they have played 34 games.

“So, we are 14 games more than what they’ve played, so they are your well-rested team.

“Coming into this game, we were playing yesterday [Tuesday], and Chiefs had a whole week of preparation, so we don’t want to fall into the fallacy of thinking we are favourites.

“We are not, but Kaizer Chiefs are.”