Sanele Barns of Richards Bay FC challenged by Kaizer Chiefs' Faiz Abrahams during the Betway Premiership match at Priness Magogo Stadium on Wednedsay might.
Image: BackpagePix
Richards Bay coach Ronnie Gabriel was left ruing a missed opportunity after his side surrendered the lead twice to draw 2-2 with Kaizer Chiefs at Princess Magogo Stadium in Durban on Wednesday night.
The Natal Rich Boyz looked on course for a first win of the season after Nqaba Xulu’s double put them in front, but Siphesihle Ndlovu’s 77th-minute strike rescued a point for Chiefs.
For Gabriel, the turning point came when Thulane Gumede was presented with a one-on-one opportunity to make it 3-1.
“I think we could have held on for the three points. It’s disappointing to throw away the three points like that and take one point,” Gabriel said. “We were 2-1 up and then we had a one-on-one with the goalkeeper to make it 3-1 and then we didn’t take the chance and Chiefs come and equalise on the other end. Had we taken the chance it would have been curtains. It would have been our three points.”
Richards Bay were always a threat on the counter, while their defensive organisation made life difficult for Chiefs for long periods. Gabriel was particularly pleased with the way his side nullified Chiefs’ threat in the wide areas, using their wing-backs to good effect.
“We planned accordingly to face a strong Chiefs team, especially with the formation that they play,” he said. “We managed to nullify the threats in the side areas using the wing-backs.”
But Chiefs’ ability to dominate possession eventually tested the home side.
“I think they also held possession for long periods in the game. They gave us some difficult moments, some difficult challenges that we had to solve.”
One major positive for Richards Bay was the continued emergence of Xulu, who took his tally to three goals with his brace against Chiefs.
“He’s been brilliant thus far for us,” Gabriel said. “He has shown his worth, he’s shown his value, he’s shown his quality, that he’s capable of performing at this level.
“What better way to repay us than with goals, scoring week in and week out? We just now need to continue to work with him, polish up areas that we feel he could improve on and it can be a 10 to 12-goal season for him.”
Gabriel’s immediate focus is now on next week’s KwaZulu-Natal derby against AmaZulu, with Richards Bay still searching for their first three points of the league campaign.
“We’ll have to take this type of effort into the next game against AmaZulu and see if it gets us three points,” he said.
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