Gallants confident of reaching next round

CAPTAIN Lehlohonolo Nonyane is confident that Marumo Gallants can still progress to the next round of the Confederation Cup qualifiers, after losing the first leg of their preliminary qualifying tie against Futuro Kings in Equatorial Guinea.

Gallants had a rollercoaster outing in their first campaign in the top flight last term after buying the Premier Soccer League status of Bidvest Wits.

They finished 12th on the Premiership standings but bagged the Nedbank Cup crown against Chippa United in May.

Then still known as Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila FC, that triumph under coach Dylan Kerr ensured that they qualified for the Confederation Cup this season.

Gallants stuttered in the preliminary round, losing the first leg away to Futuro.

However, they are taking confidence from the fact that their away goal in the 2-1 loss could come in handy in the return leg at Peter Mokaba Stadium this afternoon.

A loss or draw, though, will end their continental campaign.

“For our second leg against

Futuro Kings on Friday, I believe that we still have a good chance of winning the game,” Nonyane said.

“We have an away goal advantage. Even though we lost

2-1, I believe that was not a true reflection of the game,” the skipper added.

The odds were stacked against Gallants securing a positive result in Mongomo. The team travelled with 14 players due to administrative issues. Some of the players didn’t have passports, while others were not registered for CAF competitions last month.

But with home advantage on their side, they will be eager to keep a clean sheet and score one goal in order to progress to the next round of the qualifiers.

Goalkeeper Washington Arubi is confident they can overturn the tie.

“I promise that we’ll be able to bounce back, considering the way the guys put in the effort (away). I can see us going to the next round,” Arubi reasoned.

“But I am not thinking about the next round, it is the next game where we have to bounce back.”

Arubi linked up with the rest of the players late in Mongomo after experiencing visa complications. He had come back from camp with the Zimbabwe national team, and despite arriving two hours before kick-off, the bulky goalkeeper said he was okay to play.

“It was tough. But at the end of the day, I had to play for the team because I am contracted. I had to be strong and go through the journey. I got here at 2pm and played at 4pm. But I didn’t feel anything. Mentally and physically I’m on point,” he said.