“Richards Bay Desperate For Points Against Sundowns”

Richards Bay co-coach Ronnie Gabriel acknowledges the urgency of securing points against Mamelodi Sundowns, given their precarious position on the league table.

Bay will host Sundowns in a Betway Premiership match at King Zwelithini Stadium on Saturday (15:30), aiming for their second consecutive victory this season.

The KwaZulu-Natal side currently occupies the second-to-last position with eight points from 11 matches, two points ahead of bottom-placed Magesi FC.

Despite their historical losing record against Sundowns in the top flight, Gabriel expressed confidence in his team’s ability to secure a positive result against the league leaders.

“We know Mamelodi Sundowns are a formidable opponent, the dominant force in South Africa,” said Gabriel. 

“We got to prepare correctly, we got to do our analysis correctly, we need points in that game, we cannot run out from that.”  

Gabriel, who guided the team to victory over Golden Arrows in their previous match, expressed a preference for a more consistent match schedule to allow for better momentum building.

The win against Arrows occurred on 14 December, resulting in an extended break between matches.

“I think we would have wanted it that way, I’m sure the way the fixtures are set – certain times they are congested and the other times it is got longer breaks in between games and these things affect the performances as well, we cannot take that away,” he said.  

“But we got to work whatever is in front of us and prepare the team adequately.”