Baroka coach Dylan Kerr has responded to Josef Zinnbauer’s comments about facing smaller teams and hit back by saying ‘every team in the PSL is a big team’.
The Limpopo-based outfit earned a point against Pirates after playing out to a 1-1 draw at Emirates Airline Park on Tuesday evening after Evidence Makgopa cancelled out Tshegofatso Mabaso’s opener.
The Bakgaga coach revealed that he spoke to the Pirates coach before the game about the comments he made on playing smaller teams, but Kerr understands that it was taken out of context.
‘I’m very happy with the performance. The boys dug deep. You’ll get a lot of people saying you’re playing Orlando Pirates, you’ve got to raise your game and they have. That’s the standard we do in training,’ Kerr told SuperSport TV after the game.
‘I said before we started that mistakes are going to cost us. Thami [Masiya] was unlucky, he didn’t mean that and we got punished from it but we recovered. Thami went on to have a great game, he was outstanding today and I thought all the players put in a good shift today and they should feel disappointed because Pirates only had one shot.
‘To do that against Orlando Pirates is very good for us, to give them nothing. We had a couple of opportunities. We’ve got a couple of free-kick specialists apparently, but they’re not scoring. They’re trying too hard. They don’t relax.
‘But obviously I’m happy with a point away at Orlando Pirates. I would have liked three but, again, it gives us a little bit more confidence and we’re looking forward to a six-pointer with Chippa.
‘All the games are big. I mean I’ve spoken to the Orlando Pirates coach before the game. He’s probably done it tongue in cheek and not realised. He said that Pirates haven’t played the smaller teams. I know it’s not disrespectful but he’s got to learn that every team in the PSL is a big team.
‘Baroka’s a big club, we’re building. I know he didn’t mean what he said, it was taken out of context,’ concluded Kerr.