Sinethemba Badela: Chippa cannot save best for big guns only

The Chilli Boys fought back to secure a 1-1 draw with the Betway Premiership champions on Saturday afternoon.

He wants to see this level maintained against the lesser sides as well.

"Yes, this season is going to be a big challenge. Mamelodi Sundowns had defeated us seven times in a row before this game, so for the club it feels like a victory, but for me, I'm never satisfied.

"The players know that they need to improve, and I already told them that every match in the PSL is difficult.

"Luckily, for this match, we did not have to motivate the players," explained the young head coach. 

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It was a tough fixture for Chippa, and Badela explained how they managed to adapt throughout the match.

"We had a plan in the first half, but we did struggle a bit. I also thought we had some good chances, and in our pre-match talk, we told the players that Mamelodi Sundowns is a team that doesn't waste too many chances."

The Chippa mentor quickly added that his team is still some way from the well-oiled machine he envisions.

"We are still far away from where we want to be. It is still a work in progress, and like I said, we have to take all of the information from this match. 

"For instance, in the last 15 minutes of the match, we started to run out of energy and fresh legs, that's why we made the changes we made.

We did not have our ideal 8-week pre season, but I thought this game gave us a lot to study and improve on."