Milford boss Xanti Pupuma expects young squad to grow in Premiership

Milford coach Xanti Pupuma believes his young players will become more confident and assured as they gain experience in the Premiership.

The Stallions have made an impressive start to their first season in South Africa’s top flight, collecting 18 points from 10 matches to sit fourth in the log table.

Their strong run continued at the weekend when they defeated Sekhukhune United 1-0 at Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium, a result which allowed them to retain fourth place.

“We are a team that just came up. The focus is on staying in the Premiership, being competitive, but based on how we have started and the kind of games that we’ve played we are on the right track,” Pupuma said.

The coach said Milford were keen to build a points cushion before the rest of the division reached full speed, reducing the pressure later in the campaign.

“Look, everybody has accumulated games, so the quality is going to show along the way, which is why we are trying by all means to accumulate as many points as possible early so that when everyone is up to speed, we are not desperate.”

Pupuma accepts that his side still need to improve, particularly in matching the intensity of more experienced Premiership teams.

“The only thing that we are trying to work on is to improve the intensity so that we are at the level of the teams in the league, and that is going to take time but, so far, I have been happy,” he said.

Milford’s only defeats so far have come against Orlando Pirates in the opening league match, in the Carling Knockout and against Mamelodi Sundowns. All three losses came away from home.

Pupuma is now eager to see how those opponents perform when they travel to Richards Bay for the corresponding fixtures.

“We are a team that always backs ourselves, and we are very disappointed with the three losses we’ve accumulated. I think the only positive side for us is that all three are away games.

“So it’s going to be very interesting to see how they are when they come to our venue, what kind of a game do we give them.

“Obviously I’m hoping my boys will have a little bit more confidence and experience in the division. But any loss is a disappointment. Unfortunately for us, we always think whoever we are playing, we will win the game.”