Orlando Pirates assistant coach Fadlu Davids says they are looking to create a winning mentality and never-say-die attitude at the club, adding that results have not reflected their performances.

Pirates have struggled since Rhulani Mokwena stepped up to replace Milutin Sredojevic, and despite showing signs of last season’s form they have largely produced inconsistent results. They sit ninth in the Absa Premiership standings with 13 points from three wins out of 11 games.

The technical team has stressed patience over this difficult period and Davids believes that although results have not always gone their way, there have been good performances.

‘We know that we are not in a good space in terms of results, but our performance has been good,’ Davids told Phakaaathi.

‘So, to grab that mentality and go along with the performance says we are not going to give up, we are going to persevere and be able to get the result to complement the performance.

‘Some players are coming back from injury and they have not played many minutes, while some players have played most of the games and they need a break. They need to refresh, they need to re-energise, not only from a physical side but from the thinking side – to reset their brains and say: “Hey, let’s take the next three days and try to get maximum points.”

‘The individual approach is something that we are working on to get the best out of each of our players and ultimately get the best out of the team,’ added the assistant on their mental approach to coaching.

‘There were players who were away on national duty and have to come back and get with the programme in terms of the mentality we are trying to create. And, of course, the majority of the squad is here and the players coming back need to jump on the train and get on with the mentality and what we are trying to implement.

‘We need a ruthless mentality, how to kill off games, how to score the second goal. That’s the mentality we are trying to create, the winning mentality, the never-say-die attitude.’

Pirates are next in action on Tuesday evening as they host an out-of-form Polokwane City at the Orlando Stadium.