Orlando Pirates captain Nkosinathi Sibisi has admitted that they face a very painful week after his side failed to defend their MTN8 crown.
Pirates, who came into the titanic clash as the defending champions, were looking to equal Kaizer Chiefs’ record of 15 MTN8 titles but fell short to Mamelodi Sundowns who beat them 2-0.
Teboho Mokoena’s first-half strike and Iqraam Rayners’ penalty late in second half was enough to see Miguel Cardoso and his men claim their first Wafa Wafa title since 2021, also avenging their 2023 final defeat to Pirates.
Speaking after the final whistle at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday night, ‘Bhodlela’ admitted that it was a difficult defeat to stomach though he called for his charges to redirect their focus for their upcoming games.
“A difficult one to take you know,” a dejected Sibisi told OP TV.
“Very, very difficult. It’s going to be a very painful week for us.
“But we have to move on, we still have more games coming.
I think we can still build from the performance, the boys left everything on the field, but it was just not meant to be.”
The Buccaneers are next up against TS Galaxy at Orlando Amstel Arena on Tuesday, 13 October.