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Johannesburg - Ruud Krol believes his Orlando Pirates players were not clever enough to ensure they left Seisa Ramabodu Stadium with maximum points on Sunday.
Siphelele Mthembu's late strike for Bloemfontein Celtic cancelled out Katlego Mashego's 72nd-minute opener.
The 1-1 draw saw both teams extend their unbeaten runs, with Bucs not suffering defeat in 16 games and Phunya Sele Sele managing to do the same in 14 fixtures.
Krol admitted he expected a tricky tie against the hosts, but maintained his men could have walked away winners.
"It is always a difficult match when it is Pirates against Celtic, but I thought after we went up 1-0, we could have better controlled the match," he said.
"We went for the 2-0 and with our youngsters in midfield - sometimes their heart is bigger than their mind.
"That is not good and I wanted to make a change, but we let a goal in and then I had to recalculate the match."
When asked what he wanted his side to do differently, Krol responded: "After the 1-0 we had to be more clever, we had to close the door.
"They had a few opportunities, we had a few opportunities - but I still think we could have done things better today."
Pirates are one point clear at the top of the table and will tackle title-rivals Mamelodi Sundowns in the Nedbank Cup this weekend.
But with the crucial league fixture against second-placed Ajax Cape Town scheduled just four days later on March 16, the Dutchman could choose to field his fringe players in the cup.
Siphelele Mthembu's late strike for Bloemfontein Celtic cancelled out Katlego Mashego's 72nd-minute opener.
The 1-1 draw saw both teams extend their unbeaten runs, with Bucs not suffering defeat in 16 games and Phunya Sele Sele managing to do the same in 14 fixtures.
Krol admitted he expected a tricky tie against the hosts, but maintained his men could have walked away winners.
"It is always a difficult match when it is Pirates against Celtic, but I thought after we went up 1-0, we could have better controlled the match," he said.
"We went for the 2-0 and with our youngsters in midfield - sometimes their heart is bigger than their mind.
"That is not good and I wanted to make a change, but we let a goal in and then I had to recalculate the match."
When asked what he wanted his side to do differently, Krol responded: "After the 1-0 we had to be more clever, we had to close the door.
"They had a few opportunities, we had a few opportunities - but I still think we could have done things better today."
Pirates are one point clear at the top of the table and will tackle title-rivals Mamelodi Sundowns in the Nedbank Cup this weekend.
But with the crucial league fixture against second-placed Ajax Cape Town scheduled just four days later on March 16, the Dutchman could choose to field his fringe players in the cup.
