picture: lonwabo marele
The side went to that match with their confidence levels on a high after beating Mandalay’s Y2K, in Mandalay, in the last round of 128.
Despite that, however, they were up against a different side in the form of Cape Town Tygerberg LFA-affiliated Table View FC.
One of the things that could have motivated the Heideveld players was the fact that they are coached by the charismatic and ever-colourful Anthony Barnes.
The highly experienced Barnes knows what it is like to win in this competition, having led Manenberg’s Jordan Callies to victory in the 2013 edition of the competition.
But the side the master tactician is coaching this time around is different from the Callies of five years ago. That Callies team was made up of experienced campaigners compared to the younger and less experienced Goal 50 players.
“We are a young side and still trying to find our feet.
“The plan, against Table View, was to stay compact while playing entertaining, possession-based football.
“I think Table View were more experienced and mature when it comes to playing at this level. They used that experience effectively,” he said.
“Table View were also able to put pressure on our 17-year-old goalie Emile Hendricks, and his defence, and that resulted in them scoring two quick goals in the first 10 minutes of the match.
“We never really recovered from that. Despite the loss, however, we are still on track because, for us, it was more about exposure,” he added.
Barnes also noted that their plan was more about using this year’s Coke Cup competition to prepare his charges for the SAB League, which kicks off next month.
“I think we did well, I didn’t really think we would come this far in this year’s competition but the players showed they could compete.
“Looking at the team we have assembled and the pace at which they are developing, I can promise you that next year we will be in it to win it. For now, we are still in the building stage,” said Barnes.
He made the same promise when he was still at Callies and he delivered.