Black Leopards coach Alan Clark has blasted defender Chris Katjiukua for making what he described as a 'schoolboy error' in the defeat to Baroka FC at Peter Mokaba Stadium on Saturday.
With five minutes to go until the half-time interval in the Limpopo derby, Katjiukua dallied on the ball far too long, allowing Bakgaga striker Evidence Makgopa to dispossess him before charging clear and slotting the ball calmly past the onrushing Rothsidzwa Muleka.
Only last week, Bidvest Wits coach Gavin Hunt singled out defender Sifiso Hlanti for criticism and Clark has followed suit in singling out one of his players via the media.
"That is a schoolboy error. My son is 11 years old and he doesn't make that mistake," Clark said after the game.
"You can't even coach people to stop making errors. For me it's unbelievable, we worked on how they will attack us and we defended situations all the time, only to allow them to score, we are our own worst enemy."
To make matters worse, another mistake led to Leopards conceding their second goal when Muleka came off his line in a mad rush of blood to his head to allow Makgopa to pounce once again and lob the embarrassed shot-stopper.
"My goalkeeper also runs out when there is no need for him to come out. What is he doing there in that situation? Maybe it is a mentality and a fear of where we are."
Leopards are now three points adrift of second-from-bottom AmaZulu and will be looking to claw themselves out of the relegation zone when they face a tought trip to Wits on Tuesday night.
- TEAMtalk media