Fernando Da Cruz says Kaizer Chiefs deserved more from Richards Bay draw

Kaizer Chiefs coach Fernando Da Cruz says his side were the better team despite dropping two points in a 2-2 draw with Richards Bay FC on Wednesday evening.

The Amakhosi were forced to recover from a difficult first half against the Natal Rich Boys, with Richards Bay taking a 2-0 lead before the interval. Nqaba Xulu scored twice for the hosts, while Chiefs goalkeeper Brandon Petersen was at fault for the opening goal.

Although Kaizer Chiefs fought back to secure a point, the result saw them lose ground on the early leaders in the Premiership table. They are now third after being overtaken by Mamelodi Sundowns.

Da Cruz felt his side’s performance should have produced a better outcome, but criticised the mistakes which allowed Richards Bay to take control of the match.

“Yes, we conceded that goal but after we continued to play well. We made a good first half, but we made too much gifts to the opponents and we lost two much points,” Da Cruz told SuperSport TV.

The Chiefs coach said his players responded positively to conceding but acknowledged that giving away two goals was inconsistent with the quality of their overall display.

“To continue to play like that because we made a good first half, but it’s not normal to concede two goals like that when we play this type of football when we played so well so I asked them to continue to play well and to continue to push, push,” he continued.

Kaizer Chiefs eventually found a way back into the contest, with Asanele Velebayi making an impact after coming on as a substitute. His contribution was another positive for Da Cruz, who has been encouraged by the performances of his replacements at the start of the season.

The coach said the squad would need to maintain that attitude as the campaign develops, stressing that success would depend on more than the starting XI.

“It’s the beginning of the season, our substitute’s player when they come in, they make a very good job, we need to keep this, we need to keep this mindset because we don’t need eleven players but we need a complete squad to look forward,” da Cruz said.

Despite the disappointment of conceding twice and failing to take all three points, Da Cruz remained clear in his assessment of the match. He believed Kaizer Chiefs had created the better performance and that Richards Bay had not been superior to his team.

“Yes, we lost two points today because we made a very good game and we were better than the opponent. It’s not that the opponent were better, but we made too much mistakes.”

The draw leaves Kaizer Chiefs third in the Premiership standings, with Mamelodi Sundowns moving ahead of them as the early pace-setters. Richards Bay, meanwhile, held on to a two-goal advantage at half-time before the Amakhosi’s response rescued a point.