Cape Town - With just a few weeks to go to the Carling Black Label Champion Cup, two legendary former strikers from Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs have a few tips for Champion Coaches on how to go about deciding on their frontline runners ahead of the clash at FNB Stadium on 30 July 2016.
Former Chiefs and Pirates forward Pollen Ndlanya and ex-AmaKhosi frontman Shane McGregor are both former international strikers who knew their way around the penalty box and scored a mountain of goals in South Africa’s elite league.
Ndlanya, who had two spells at Chiefs and ended his career at Pirates, feels
both sides had their challenges last season and that fans will have to put some
deep thought into their selections for the Carling Black Label Champions Cup.
“Chiefs have very good strikers, players like Bernard Parker and Camildine
Abraw, but last season we saw that they struggled a bit. They each bring
something different to the team and have their own qualities,” Ndlanya says.
“But Chiefs also have players in the midfield who can score goals, Siphiwe Tshabalala, George Lebese and even Willard Katsande. But obviously you rely on your strikers most and you want them to be confident in the box.”
He adds that Pirates also have a good frontline with the likes of Thamsanqa Gabuza and Tendai Ndoro.
“Ndoro found his scoring boots towards the end of the season and he showed his star quality that made Pirates sign him. This speaks volumes on why he is currently the teams current vote leader.
Ndlanya says he would have loved to play in the Carling Black Label Champions Cup if the fixture had been on the calendar in his playing days.
“It’s a brilliant concept and I think the fact that the supporters select the starting line-ups comes with its own pressure for the players. But I would have loved that, I loved to play under pressure, it brought the best out in me. And any Soweto Derby match you play in is special.”
MacGregor says the roles of a striker may be different in a team and that each has their own jobs beyond just putting the ball in the back of the net.
“There are obviously different types of strikers, you get a traditional number nine who is more of a box-to-box type of player, and then a number 10 who plays off him,” MacGregor says.
“The number 10 should get the ball into his strike partner, just like Fani Madida did for me when I played at Chiefs. He gets behind the defenders and also attracts them away from the number nine to give him more space to play.
“For me when I played, it was about shielding the ball and brining other players in. It’s not necessarily something that comes naturally, you need to work very hard at it.
“Whoever the striker, you need to play to his strengths and have the players around him who can get him into scoring positions.”
Consumer Coaches still have time to assess their striking options ahead of the Carling Black Label Champions Cup and make changes.