How Mine head coach, Kelvin Kaindu, has said the Bulawayo side have what it takes to be among the top on the premier league table after a 3-1 away win over reigning champions CAPS United at the National Sports Stadium yesterday.
The Miners saw off the Green Machine through goals from Pasca Manhanga and Thembani Masuku in the 18th, 65th and 82nd minutes respectively while CAPS United replied through aTafadzwa Rusike strike two minutes before half time.
Speaking in the wake of the win, the former Highlanders and Triangle FC coach said How Mine have managed to upset most of the premiership big guns this season.
“If you look at the teams that are at the summit of the table, only Ngezi Platinum beat us. We beat Chicken Inn, we beat Dynamos, we beat CAPS United [and] we have beaten Black Rhinos and we have got the pedigree to probably rub shoulders with the big guys. But it’s good for us as well,” Kaindu told journalists.
He hailed the performance of the team yesterday, which has won four of their last six premier league matches and said he is glad to have collected all three points to shoot to third position on the league table.
“But I think what gave us the momentum is that the moment we scored the first goal, we knew today if we can push; we knew three points would definitely push us to the summit of the table, that’s what we managed to get. It’s a plus for us and I give credit to the team I think everybody worked. We only had one false substitution because of the injury on the goalkeeper, but all in all I think everybody put up a good performance today.
“We haven’t scored three goals [in one match] this season and we managed to score three goals against CAPS United. They are not a push over [side], they are one of the good teams in the league, they have been playing in Africa,” he said.
He, however, admitted that the premiership title is still a long way to be determined by the current log standings halfway into the season despite expressing the zeal to maintain their form and position on the log.
How Mine now have 31 points from 17 matches having won nine, drawn four and lost four matches at the season’s half way mark.
“We are still too many games to go. If you look at the European league I think most teams that probably finish (sic) at the top of the log in the first round, they do well even as they get to the finish. It think it’s good for us to finish at the top of the league with the same points with the team that is leading. We just need to work on the goal difference.
“We started quite low, I think we were at the bottom of the log in the first three games but I think slowly we’ve been trying to pick up points. We have played well at home, our away record hasn’t been okay, but I’m happy this is a second win we are winning at the National Sports Stadium,” he said.
