Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro has explained his bold decision to field six DStv Diski Challenge [DDC] graduates in their comeback victory over arch-rivals Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto derby at FNB Stadium on Saturday.

The Spanish mentor entrusted his youthful squad members to assume responsibility against their nemesis as Relebohile Mofokeng, 20, Mohau Nkota, 20, and Mbekezeli Mbokazi, 19, were all named in the starting XI.

In addition, Siyabonga Ndlozi, 22, Boitumelo Radiopane, 22, and Simphiwe Selepe, 20, were introduced from the bench in the second half for Bandile Shandu, Evidence Makgopa, and Thalente Mbatha, respectively, while Yanga Madiba was an unused substitute.

As a result, Pirates finished the derby with six youngsters on the field and the Bucs tactician says the players featured on merit as they showcased their readiness in training, stating that his selection criteria is not based on factors such as age.

“We are proud of them because again, if I’m saying I’m giving them the opportunities, alright, it’s about me putting them on the field yes, but it’s because they are showing every week that they really want to get the opportunity, that they are prepared,” Riveiro said.

“That’s if there’s a way to describe what it means to be prepared, because you will never be fully prepared until you start to get the experience. But like I said many times already, it’s not about the age, it’s about the talent, it’s about professionalism, and it’s about giving them the confidence.

“If they feel that we trust them, it’s going to give them a very important [confidence] boost, and I said already many times that what you get from the academy players is something that you cannot get from anybody else.”

Moreover, Riveiro believes academy products offer something different that cannot be found in the market since they are already accustomed to the beliefs and values of the club and embody the team’s culture, crediting the management for the influx of talented youngsters at Pirates.

“They have something special; they are used to looking at the club in a very different way, they were around the team before, first maybe as ball boys, playing in the DDC, coming to our training, you know little by little absorbing the culture of the team,” added the Buccaneers’ gaffer.

“And when they are ready to go, they will give you something special, identity, all of those things that play an important role in football, and I think the club doing a good job in that sense because I said many times this is not the Riveiro vision, it’s about Orlando Pirates.

“We are trying to do our jobs, my job as a coach is to give them the tools to do the things good and together with the technical staff and that’s what we do and when the things are going well like today [Saturday] you can imagine that the feeling for all of us is something special.” 

The Sea Robbers will swing back into action with a trip to the Moses Mabhida Stadium to take on Golden Arrows in the Betway Premiership on Tuesday before switching their focus to the Nedbank Cup final against Chiefs on 10 May at the same venue.