LAMONTVILLE Golden Arrows head coach Manqoba Mngqithi chose to search for silver linings amid turbulences early in a year, even as his side were edged 1–0 by Kaizer Chiefs in Tuesday night’s Betway Premiership encounter.
Aiden McCarthy’s maiden PSL goal proved decisive and compounded Abafana Bes’thende’s recent struggles. Since their emphatic 4–0 victory over Marumo Gallants at the beginning of November, the KwaZulu-Natal outfit have now slipped into a four-match losing streak, a run that has placed their top-eight ambitions under increasing threat.
Arrows have often shown enterprise without reward this season, and once again found themselves reflecting on missed opportunities. While controversy surrounded the goal they conceded, the visitors also failed to capitalise on several promising moments — a recurring theme that has continued to undermine their progress.
Despite the frustration of defeat — Arrows’ ninth of the campaign — Mngqithi chose to highlight aspects of the performance that encouraged him, particularly given the context of the fixture.
“I was excited with other aspects of the game, and you must remember we are playing against Chiefs on their home ground in their first match of the calendar year,” Mngqithi said at the post-match press conference.
He acknowledged that the hosts’ desperation, following their own run without a win, played a significant role in shaping the encounter.
“They are also coming from the same position that we were in — four games in a row without a win.
“It becomes important to understand the level of desperation from the home team, and it was important for us to respond. I think we responded very well to the overloads they were putting on our last line.”
The former Mamelodi Sundowns coach also pointed to encouraging moments during his side’s build-up play, even though they were forced to adjust their approach at times.
“From our build-up we got some good moments. In the first half the keeper (Thakasani Mbanjwa) started playing the long ball, but in the second half he recovered. We were just unfortunate in some instances.
“We had to rely on those few percentages that we had — from free kicks and counter-attacks. We could have easily stolen a point or more from the same game, but unfortunately on the day we did not take those moments very well.”
Addressing concerns over Arrows’ attacking output — just two goals in their last four matches — Mngqithi insisted that scoring was not his primary concern.
Instead, the Arrows coach believes defensive organisation remains the area requiring the most attention, particularly under sustained pressure.
“To be honest, I am not worried about that, because scoring goals is what we have done well,” he added.
“We have to try and make sure that we defend better, which I think we have improved a lot in that aspect.
“The pressure that Chiefs put on our last line made us not have the structure that we wanted, and we were hoping that from the transitions that we had we would be able to do something.”
With their fixture against Stellenbosch FC postponed due to the Cape Winelands outfit’s involvement in the CAF Confederation Cup this weekend, Mngqithi and his charges will have extended time to address problem areas before meeting Richards Bay in the KwaZulu-Natal derby on Friday the 30th.
