AmaZulu head coach Benni McCarthy says while he would’ve liked the win, he will take the point after an entertaining 2-2 draw against Golden Arrows on Wednesday.
It was AmaZulu’s third draw this season, but McCarthy says he can take positives from the game, as he saw his side score two goals, but also hit the woodwork twice, and concede two penalties.
And McCarthy says had it not been for the good performance of Arrows goalkeeper Sifiso Mlungwana, his team would’ve walked away with the win.
“My point of view of the game, ja, it was very entertaining like you said, but I think it was a missed opportunity for us,” McCarthy said after the game.
“We played extremely well, we started the game, really good, high tempo, good chances that we created and we hit the target, we hit the target, and we looked like a team that was always going to score.
“And unfortunately for us, the goalkeeper had one of those days where every shot, every ball seemed to just fall perfectly, exactly where he’s positioned. And he was able to get fingertips to the ball or a foot, or that, and preventing us from even going further ahead in the game, you know.
“But I really liked what I saw from the team, the work ethic, the mentality.
“Sometimes when we were with our backs against the wall, we never gave up, we continued to dig in there, and we turned the game around, and we should have probably gotten another one because I felt there towards the end, if Maduna goes down because he gets smashed, and he tried to stay on his feet, to be honest, and a little bit too much honest, if he just goes down because he did get kicked.
“And then we get another penalty, then it then it evens up the score, two penalties a-piece, but we winning the game if we gotten that penalty. But anyway, you got to give the player a lot of respect for trying to stay on his feet and allowing the opposition, a chance not to get another penalty against them.
“But overall, I think we can’t really complain or moan too much about getting a point, because a point against a team who has been really good, who started the league really well, and we’re not playing the football that we did and and get disappointed by getting nothing from the game.”
Despite the draw, McCarthy saw signs of improvement and feels they are close to picking up their first win of the season.
“So getting one point is better than getting a loss on our name. And we score two goals, so that’s exciting, and that’s again, very positive,” he added.
“Very positive signs that we’re moving in the right direction and the team is slowly, slowly slowly getting there, getting to at our level best so hopefully come the latter stages, we will be in good form, and we can build from this game, and then the next game coming up, Baroka, and then we can maybe get something better from that game.
“If we get a win there, it will just set us up because we’ve got three points now on the log, and we still there hovering at the bottom of the table.
“But if you get a win against the next opponent on Saturday, then you jump to the six points and then you jump into the top part of the log, and I think that’s where we belong. That’s where we want to be. And that’s where we playing to get to.”
