Soccer
Larsen’s Magesi relaxed heading into CKO Cup final─── MORGAN PIEK 14:28 Thu, 21 Nov 2024
The Premier Soccer League club, Magesi FC, are geared for the biggest match in the club’s history when they face Mamelodi Sundowns in Bloemfontein on Saturday in the final of the Carling Knockout Cup.
The minnows from Limpopo will draw confidence out of eliminating the Soweto giants, Orlando Pirates, in the round of 16.
However, the Brazilians are on fire in the cup competition, and they have managed to score a lot of goals, 11 in total with a 5-0 win against Golden Arrows, a 4-0 win against Kaizer Chiefs and a 2-0 victory against Marumo Gallants in Bloemfontein.
En route to the final, the team playing in the PSL for the first time this season, Magesi, slayed the Buccaneers with a 3-2 win at the Orlando Stadium, while they beat the unpredictable TS Galaxy 1-0 in Nelspruit, and Richards Bay 1-0 in Umlazi.
Magesi’s trump card is their coach, Clinton Larsen, who guided Bloemfontein Celtic to the title in 2012 when they beat Sundowns 1-0 in the final. The former Bafana Bafana midfielder also previously led Celtic to a 5-0 drubbing of Downs in the MTN8.
The former two-time Celtic coach and Pirates midfielder, Larsen, said it’s all about controlling the nerves and enjoying the occasions which don’t come around all that often.
“I think firstly when you talk about the mood, coming off a win, even though there's been a two-week break, always creates an air of positivity around the club,” said Larsen who knows what it takes to win titles against big teams.
Delano Abrahams and Samuel Darpoh. Photo: X
“So that has been the case, you know, after our win against Richards Bay, the spirit has been good and we've managed to rest the players a bit and then focus on this week's preparations for Sundowns and looking at our match strategy.
“In terms of the mood, I’m very, very happy and the players look relaxed, even though there may be some nerves, some anxiousness, which is normal – 90% of these boys have never played in a game of this magnitude, so it is normal for there to be a bit of anxiety.
‘We want to calm them down as much as possible to enjoy the occasion’
“But that's what we are here for as coaches and the senior players as well, to calm them down and just get them to relax as much as possible and enjoy the occasion.”
Saturday’s final between Magesi FC and Mamelodi Sundowns at the Toyota Stadium kicks off at 18:00.
