Jose Riveiro: Orlando Pirates’ three points against 14th team must have same importance as a derby

Jose Riveiro: Orlando Pirates’ three points against 14th team must have same importance as a derby

OBAKENG MELETSE

Mamelodi Sundowns once again asserted their dominance in South African football as they clinched their seventh successive league title.

Bringing back the glory days of the ‘shoe shine and piano’ style of play, Sundowns have been dismissive to all comers, and they will once again be the team to beat next season.

Orlando Pirates edged Stellenbosch FC on goal difference to seal second spot, and steal a CAF Champions League place on the last day of the season.

Fighting tooth and nail, both sides still ended well short of the 73-point benchmark set by Bafana ba Style.

The order of the DStv Premiership table is a true reflection of the best three teams in the country in all competitions.

It is a statement that a few might argue, but the fact that all four trophies on offer are held by each of these three clubs is testament to the quality of football they have displayed this season.

Despite all of this, the Brazilians remain the kings of SA football. Their consistency not only in the PSL, but across Africa has not been matched for the past seven years.

Needing to come up with a solution to close a 23-point gap between now and next season, Pirates coach Jose Riveiro – speaking on Metro FM’s Sports Nights Amplified with Andile Ncube this week – believes his team have progressed enough in the last two years, and there is not much between them and the league champions.

“There is no gap anymore. We will all be on zero, and that’s the way I see it,” Riveiro said.

“What happened this season is gone, the mistakes we made, we have already paid for them, and we are now looking into the future.

“We need to feel the pain of the points we dropped, because it’s not a scenario we dreamed of before the season started. But we have an opportunity to be critical with ourselves to understand that we cannot give away points, and it cannot happen again.

“I do not need to say that we can be competitive on the day, because we have shown it for the last two years.

“When there is no other option, we can do it, but there are games that if we are being honest were not at the level that we should be – and that is the difference between a team that won the league and that’s what we need to learn.”

The Buccaneers were wasteful and dropped a lot of points against teams they should be beating on paper.

Their lacklustre and inconsistent performances cost them a lot of crucial points, and ultimately, they couldn’t keep up with Masandawana.

“The consistency and everything belongs in a space of keeping a level of motivation in each and every game, to understand that the three points against a team that is placed 14th in the log have the same importance as a derby,” Riveiro said.

“Or when we face the number one in the log, everything is there for us … We just need to make sure it happens often and early in the season.

“In the first three months of the next season, we will play in four different competitions, and that is where we need to be much better. And for me, that will come from a certain level of maturity as a group, and that’s where I feel the team is getting much better.”

The Sea Robbers beat Sundowns in the MTN8 and the Nedbank Cup finals, but the real test will be if they can stop the runaway train next season in the league.