Mamelodi Sundowns head coach Rulani Mokwena took a slight jab at Golden Arrows coach Steve Komphela for failing to win against 10-man Downs on Wednesday evening.
Mosa Lebusa’s red card in the 46th minute saw Bafana Ba Style play the rest of the second half with 10-man. Abafana Bes’thende failed to create clear-cut chances despite having an extra player on the field.
Sundowns coach Rulani Mokwena took a slight jab at his ex-colleague Steve Komphela after the match.
Well, I think maybe his motivation to beat us should have been higher especially when there is a numerical advantage, but I can’t speak for Steve,” he said.
“We tried to win the game, we did everything we could to win the game. I am very proud of the players for their effort.”
Rulani Mokwena says Komphela’s motivation should be higher
Mokwena claimed his side should have scored five goals in the first half alone. He also suggested that Arrows approached the match with a defensive mindset and didn’t bother attacking despite the numerical advantage.
“I don’t understand how we got into halftime 0-0 [because we had] so many chances; I was counting at one point and I stopped. I think it should have been 5-0,” Mokwena told the media.
“Then it is 10 vs 11, but there is still one team on the pitch and that is why [Ismail Watenga was the Man of the Match. It was one of those games where the ball didn’t go into the back of the net.”
It seems there is no love lost between Mokwena and Komphela. The two worked together as co-coaches at Downs for two years before Steve was demoted together with Manqoba Mngqithi.
The 56-year-old coach left Masandawana for Moroka Swallows last year but only lasted six months before leaving the Soweto Giants. In March, the Arrows coach stated that some coaches he worked with didn’t share information. He further stated that the coaches’ laptops had four passwords and he wasn’t allowed near them.
Komphela’s statement was seen as a jab at Mokwena and the Sundowns coach hit back a few days later.