The Downs skipper feels that his side is more primed to win the league title than the current log leaders
Mamelodi Sundowns captain Hlompho Kekana is confident recent experiences of triumphing in closely-contested Premier Soccer League (PSL) races will help them beat their closest challengers Kaizer Chiefs to the league title.
Second-placed Sundowns are three points behind leaders Chiefs and the two sides meet at FNB Stadium on Thursday in what is potentially the title decider.
Last season, Downs pipped Orlando Pirates to the league crown on the last day of the season to win it by two points, having also beaten the same side to the championship with a game to spare the previous season.
That is in stark contrast to Chiefs’ last league triumph in 2015 where they won it with several games to go and Kekana feels that the past brutal confrontations have battle-hardened them, an experience that would come handy in the current campaign.
“At the moment I think we now understand the nature of this game and I believe that we are a team that is very ambitious. We have been in this space for so many seasons now,” Kekana told the Sundowns media team.
“We understand that we have to take each game at a time and one of the matches that we have to take care of is the one that is coming up against Chiefs. We know that we have to do our business and we have to make sure that we win this match.
“We have to make sure that we take care of all the elements that are involved in the game. I think we are in the right frame of mind to do so because we just won the match [last game against Golden Arrows] and I think it’s a morale booster for that game. I believe we stand the chance of doing business for ourselves.”
Sundowns go into this match on the backdrop of a 1-0 win over Golden Arrows on Monday which was their first victory since the PSL season resumed.
Those three points came after a frustrating run of three draws and a defeat, a period that raised questions about Downs’ ability to claim a third successive league title.
“We have a task and responsibility to serve football lovers so we have sacrificed a lot. We know that there is a lot we have to offer on the field of play,” said Kekana.
“It was a breather to play against Arrows knowing very well that we are doing very well as a team. I think we tried, so many games that we tried to win and the tricky ones which were difficult for ourselves because we haven’t been defending well or scoring as many goals as we wanted to.
“But I think we are in a very good space at the moment because we wanted to get the three points we were really looking forward to as a team. I think at the moment the boys know that it’s doable we can go do it again, we can go and win the match again because there are still matches we still have to play.”
After facing Chiefs, Downs will be left with three league games, all interestingly against relegation fighting Limpopo teams Baroka FC, Polokwane City and Black Leopards.