Chippa, Highbury coaches remain upbeat after teams knocked out of Nedbank Cup

Eastern Cape football teams Chippa United and Highbury saw their Nedbank Cup dreams shattered this weekend as both sides crashed out in the last 32.

The Chilli Boys fell 3-2 in a tense penalty shootout against Durban City on Friday after a hard-fought, goalless draw at the Chatsworth Stadium.

Meanwhile, Highbury became the second Eastern Cape team to exit the competition, losing 1-0 to Sekhukhune United at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday.

Both Gqeberha-based sides had hoped to advance to the competition’s round of 16.

Chippa coach Vusumuzi Vilakazi knew Friday’s Nedbank Cup match would be difficult after defeating Sinethemba Badela’s side 2-0 in the Betway Premier League the week before.

Both teams held their ground as they competed for a spot in the cup’s last 16.

The game was tied after 90 minutes and extra time, so penalties were called.

It was City who came out victorious on the day.

Despite their defeat, coach Kanu, as he is known in football circles, praised his team’s performance.

“It was a good game; we were expecting a tough game,” Vilakazi said.

“Playing back-to-back matches is not easy.

“However, our main focus was not on the cup, we wanted to work on our psychological aspects in terms of having that winning mentality.

“If you remember, Chippa once lost six or eight games in a row, which had a psychological impact on the players.

“So we had to redeem ourselves as a team by understanding ourselves and competing to win games.

“That is why we wanted to go all the way, even into the cup, for the sake of our psychological health.

“I’m pleased with their performance on Friday.

“I can only hope that this performance will help us cement our position in future games and allow us to survive.”

Highbury played like a true home side on Saturday.

Coach Kabelo Sibiya’s troops pressed from the word go, looking for an opening goal, but they failed to convert their chances.

Even after Sekhukhune took the lead through Lehlohonolo Mojela’s goal in the first half, the Yellow Nation kept on pressing.

Sibiya also praised his players for putting up a fight against Sekhukhune.

“The experience of playing in the Nedbank Cup for the first time was a massive experience, especially for the players,” he said.

“If I can count our team players who have never played in the last 32, there are too many.

“It was a wonderful experience, especially playing in a big stadium like this; some of our local players have never played in this stadium.

“So it was a massive experience for them.

“I am very happy with everything — the preparation, the experience that the guys got, and even us coaches.

“We played against a PSL team. I believe we had a top plan, so this was an experience for everyone.

“I am very happy with the performance from the players; they gave it their all. We played five of our U23s today.

“This performance will encourage them to do even more going into the league,” Sibiya said.

The Herald