Sekhukhune United back Cedric Kaze despite pressure after three straight Orlando Pirates defeats

Sekhukhune United head coach Cedric Kaze remains under pressure after a difficult run of results, but the club is understood to be continuing its support for the technical team as it seeks an immediate improvement.

Babina Noko have lost their past three meetings with Orlando Pirates across domestic competitions. Their latest defeat came at the Orlando Amstel Arena, where they were beaten 3-0 in the second leg of the MTN8 semi-final.

That result sent Sekhukhune United out of the competition 4-0 on aggregate. It followed a defeat by the same opponents in the first leg of the semi-final and another loss to the Buccaneers in the Betway Premiership earlier in the week.

The sequence has increased scrutiny on Kaze and his staff, although the club has not indicated that it is preparing to make a change. Instead, Sekhukhune are understood to be backing the technical team, while also expecting results to improve quickly.

Kaze was appointed head coach before the start of the season. Paulus Masehe and Papi Zothwane were brought in as his assistant coaches.

Sekhukhune have made an inconsistent start to their league campaign and currently sit seventh in the Betway Premiership standings. They have won two and lost two of their opening four matches.

Masehe acknowledged the pressures attached to coaching after the latest loss to Orlando Pirates, but said the staff were not placing excessive pressure on Kaze.

“Look, in our line of work, pressure is an everyday thing, you know. I cannot say that there is pressure, that much pressure, on the coach or the technical team.

“Yes, we put pressure on ourselves because we want positive results all the time. But with being realistic, we say to ourselves that in the past three games, we had learned that Pirates was better with execution than us.

“But when it comes to the attitude, when it comes to the application, when it comes to the willingness to try, you can say that we are moving towards the right direction,” said Masehe, speaking to the media.

Kaze was not on the touchline for the MTN8 match. The Burundian coach watched from the stands while serving the first game of a two-match suspension imposed after he was sent off during Sekhukhune’s league meeting with Orlando Pirates earlier in the week.

The club’s next opportunity to respond comes in the Betway Premiership, when Sekhukhune face TS Galaxy at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Saturday.

That fixture will be followed closely as Babina Noko attempt to end their losing run and restore momentum to their season. With the club still standing behind Kaze and his technical team, the upcoming matches are likely to be important in determining whether Sekhukhune can quickly reverse their recent slide.