Alex Lafitte applauds game plan execution as Marumo Gallants go top

Gallants piled on the pressure on the Buccaneers, who’ve had the exact opposite start to the 2025/26 season with no points to their name as yet. 

Coach Alexandre Lafitte was happy with his side’s execution of the game plan, but admitted that it took some doing to beat last year’s runners-up.

"Honestly, I'm very happy for the team, I'm very happy for the fans, and the club. It was a difficult game because when you play Pirates, you know it's a fantastic team," said Lafitte.

"So I think the game plan was good because was, when you don't have the ball, in a short time to press high, but in a long time, wait, and when you have the ball, try to find the free player.

"I found the first goal was very good, beautiful, and after that when we started the second half, we had possession and we did good things, and then we had moments of difficulty because the athletic quality was difficult for us.

"But we finished with [fresh legs] in the substitutions and scored the goal for the victory."

This is the second time in as many games that Lafitte’s team scores in the dying minutes to secure the victory, and he pointed to their mental strength for being able to play to the final whistle.

"It was a good performance, in the two games we've scored in the 90th minute, I find it's good for the mentality and mindset, and we've worked hard for that," he added.

"I think for the future, it's important to work and develop when we have the ball, but at the moment I think it's a good start."

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