Cape Town City coach Eric Tinkler harshly criticized his team’s second-half performance against Royal AM at Harry Gwala Stadium on Saturday, describing it as “atrociously bad.”

City dominated the first half, taking a deserved lead through Prins Tjiueza in the eighth minute. However, their momentum waned significantly after halftime, allowing Royal AM to mount a comeback. The home side capitalized on City’s defensive lapse, with Motebang Sera scoring the equalizer in the 84th minute.

Tinkler expressed his disappointment with the team’s performance, stating that they should have already sealed the victory in the first half. He attributed the loss to a lack of focus and consistency.

“We ended up throwing away two points. The first 15 to 20 minutes, we should have been 3-0, 4-0 at half time,” reflected Tinkler. 

“The game should have been over by then and we became casual. You talk about it at half-time and the response is the same. For me, it was 15 minutes of potential good football and the rest was atrocious.”

While City controlled the game in the first half, it was evident that their dominance was unsustainable.

City made several significant signings during the off-season, including Kamohelo Mokotjo, Fortune Makaringe, Amadou Soukouna, Lefa Aphane, Haashim Domingo, Carlinhos, Kayden Francis, Sibusiso Ziba, Ntsikelelo Ngqonga, Elson Sithole, and Tjiueza.

When asked about the potential of these signings to challenge Mamelodi Sundowns for the league title, Tinkler maintained a more conservative approach.

He emphasized that City’s primary targets remain finishing in the top four, qualifying for CAF competitions, and winning cup competitions.

“What are my targets? Can you remember my targets from last season? Our target is to finish in the top four,” said Tinkler, whose side was the only one that beat Sundowns in the last league last season.  

“Our target is to get into CAF (club competition). Our target is to win cup competitions, that hasn’t changed, it’s exactly the same.”