We must eliminate mistakes against Mamelodi Sundowns – Chippa United coach Brandon Truter

Chippa United coach Brandon Truter has identified his side’s failure to convert chances as the biggest threat ahead of their clash with Mamelodi Sundowns.

Chippa United host the CAF Champions League winners at Buffalo City Stadium on Saturday at 5:30pm, with Truter demanding greater discipline and efficiency in the final third.

The Eastern Cape side have scored just twice in five league matches, drawing four and losing once. Truter believes that record must change if they are to turn their promising performances into victories.

The coach expects the challenge to be even greater against Sundowns, having already seen his team punished by defending champions Orlando Pirates.

“The game against the African Champions presents the challenge again,” Truter said.

“We were against the SA champions, we made three mistakes, and they punished us. So, let’s see if we can eliminate those mistakes, let’s see if we can put more discipline and turn the chances into goals.”

Truter demands ruthless finishing

Truter knows Chippa United are unlikely to create as many opportunities against Sundowns as they did against Pirates and has challenged his players to make every opening count.

“That will be our benchmark and objectives for this week because we won’t get those many [chances] against Sundowns, and that will be a challenge for us,” he said.

Chippa’s inability to turn chances into goals has been particularly costly, with four draws leaving them searching for a first major breakthrough in their campaign.

Despite the results, Truter remains encouraged by the team’s ability to avoid defeat in most of their matches. He believes the confidence gained from those performances can eventually translate into victories.

“We are building confidence in a sense that we are not losing, let’s respect Pirates for being the champions. A point in this league is valuable, we will turn this one point into three, I’m confident about it,” he said.

Sundowns provide sternest test

The defeat to Pirates remains Chippa United’s only loss this season, and Truter feels his players showed enough resilience to suggest they can compete with the country’s strongest sides.

“At this stage, we had one point last season, we will keep going,” he said.

“The only game we lost was against Pirates, which we also managed to go toe-to-toe for about 60 minutes.”

Truter also pointed to a trend that makes Chippa’s task against Sundowns even more demanding, noting that Pirates have repeatedly struck early against their opponents.

“The boys are growing nicely, but it’s the last third that is a concern for me – the chance we create.”

For Chippa, Saturday’s encounter therefore presents more than an opportunity to claim a valuable result. It will test whether they can finally turn competitive performances into goals and, crucially, three points.