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Kaizer Chiefs coach Hunt bemoans red card and another 'big mistake'
The Glamour Boys mentor spoke ahead of the game of the need to eliminate individual mistakes, yet those proved costly again for the struggling side
Kaizer Chiefs coach Gavin Hunt feels the outcome of Wednesday evening's league match against AmaZulu at the FNB Stadium could have been different had Darrel Matsheke not been sent off.
AmaZulu had scored first through Augustine Mulenga in the 45th minute before Leonardo Castro equalised from the penalty spot for Amakhosi in the 67th minute.
Matsheke then picked up a second booking for a reckless challenge and was sent for an early shower in the 72nd minute.
The winner then came in the 85th minute, through former Chiefs striker Lehlohonolo Majoro.
Hunt feels that Matsheke's dismissal was pivotal.
"The red card does [change the game]," he said in his post-match interview with SuperSport TV.
"Because we've just got the ascendancy, we've got the goal, and then we get a red card, and then...you know, we're not blessed with situations...so it does make it a bit harder, certainly much harder," the former Bidvest Wits, SuperSport United and Moroka Swallows coach added.
While Hunt believes Matsheke's sending off affected the balance of the game, he was also disappointed at the nature of the goal his side conceded five minutes from time - it was another mistake by goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune as he failed to get any distance with an attempted punch from a corner kick, allowing Majoro to skillfully flick the ball into an empty net.
"But you can't concede the second goal, there was no danger," Hunt lamented. "They [AmaZulu] could have put seven strikers up and they would never have scored. But I mean, that's pretty much, a big mistake again."
The defeat in Johannesburg leaves Amakhosi in ninth spot on the standings, with 18 points from 16 matches.
It was their third successive loss, after going down to Richards Bay in the Nedbank Cup and to Orlando Pirates in the league, and they have also gone five games without a win.
And things don't get any easier for Hunt and his men as they face SuperSport United on Saturday, with Matsatsantsa currently flying high in second position on the PSL standings.
