Pitso Dladla praises Arrows’ resilience as Sundowns stumble

Junior Dion’s 38th-minute strike handed Abafana Bes’thende the advantage after they absorbed sustained pressure from the hosts. 

The Durban side had already knocked out Kaizer Chiefs in the quarterfinals before producing another disciplined display against the Tshwane giants. 

Dladla says the players’ willingness to work for one another was particularly important when Sundowns pushed forward in search of an equaliser.

"We arrived here well prepared and we know there would be moments during which we will suffer without the ball, but we remained structured and the levels of concentration were high.

"There were moments when we had the ball and were able to string passes together to launch a few good counterattacks. One also has to be honest, we defended a little too deeply in the last few minutes of the match. It looked scary but we survived."

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Golden Arrows are now one game away from reaching the MTN8 final for the first time since their memorable 2009 triumph, when they demolished Ajax Cape Town 6-0 in the decider.

Dladla knows the job is not finished, and believes Arrows will need to show greater intent in the attacking third when Sundowns visit Durban.

"Now that we have the away goal, we are going to aggressive and intense in our approach, but we are still going to try and be solid. If we score first at home and add to our lead we stand a very good chance of emerging with the victory."

The former Durban City coach has described his early spell at Golden Arrows as demanding, particularly after the club lost several important players during the transition into the new campaign.

Among those departures was Siyanda Ndlovu, who has since joined Sundowns, meaning Dladla is having to build a competitive side while managing changes within his squad.

Arrows’ defensive record has been one of the defining features of their start to the season. Following their victory over Sundowns, Abafana Bes’thende had kept clean sheets in all five of their competitive matches.

For Dladla, the statistics are secondary to the attitude he sees from his players.