Richards Bay Aim For Nedbank Cup Upset Over Formidable Pirates

Richards Bay co-coach Ronnie Gabriel says a victory over Orlando Pirates in the Nedbank Cup round of 32 at King Zwelithini Stadium on Sunday (15:00) could be a turning point in their season as they head into the second half of the campaign.
The KwaZulu-Natal side has been battling to avoid relegation throughout the season and currently sits third from bottom with nine points after 12 matches, having won only two games.
They face a formidable opponent in Pirates, who have won the Nedbank Cup in the last two seasons and currently occupy second place in the Betway Premiership with 27 points after 11 matches, six points behind league leaders Mamelodi Sundowns with a game in hand.
Pirates recently defeated Al Ahly in Cairo to top Group C in the CAF Champions League and advance to the quarterfinals, highlighting their current form and strength.
Despite losing both league games against Pirates this season, Gabriel remains hopeful.
“The fixture schedule allows us to field a strong team. We know the league is our bread and butter, this cup is also a cup of opportunities,” said Gabriel.
“We have to go out there and compete. If we can get the results against Pirates, it will be a huge confidence boost going to the second half of the season.
“We will give it our all against Pirates and hopefully we can get the results that we need.”
However, Bay will be without Justice Fagareido and Moses Mthembu, who are both suspended for the Pirates match.
While Bay is struggling, the situation is worse for the teams below them – Royal AM and Magesi FC, offering a glimmer of hope for survival.
Royal AM, facing financial difficulties and player payment issues, have had their games suspended by the league. Magesi, at the bottom of the table, has only won one game in 13 league matches.
When asked if this situation provides motivation to avoid the bottom two positions, as they survived last season via the playoffs, Gabriel expressed confidence.
“We are confident enough we will survive this season,” said Gabriel.
“We look at the way we have been playing recently and we look at the performances in the last five or six fixtures, it has been very encouraging.
“There are games that we believe we supposed to have won and we got points out of it. We created numerous chances; the group has been dominating fixtures.
“We went to Cape Town [against Cape Town City], we dominated the exchanges, dominated the goal scoring chances, we just couldn’t come away with the points.
“The performances are encouraging. We are going to fixtures whereby we are taking ascendancy in the game, we are controlling games, and we are dominance force in these games.
“This spell that we are having, it will turn around. We will have a good spell where we will pick up a lot of points and we will beat a lot of teams in this league.
“So, we are highly confident in the way that we play, in terms of the performance and the attitude of the group.”