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JOHANNESBURG. — Black Leopards Zimbabwean forward Ovidy Karuru says players at the club are tired of fighting relegation and are aiming for a top eight place in the DStv South African Premiership football this season.
Lidoda Duvha survived the drop in the Promotion/Relegation Play-Offs in the last campaign. Battling to keep their top-flight status has been a regular theme for the club since their promotion a few seasons ago.
They are second-bottom in the current season after eight games, but Zimbabwe international Karuru believes their performances deserved more, and if they can manage matches better, will shoot up the table.
“If you saw our last three games, we played well, unfortunately it is a lack of concentration or fatigue (that cost us). We would lead at half-time, but teams would come back to equalise,” Karuru said.
“You could say we have lost seven points. We could have won against Kaizer Chiefs, we could have managed the game against TTM and against Swallows, we could have killed them in the first 20 minutes. But it is part of football.”
Karuru joined Leopards as a free agent after leaving former side Stellenbosch FC, and netted twice on debut against another of his ex-clubs, Chiefs, earlier this month.
“I have fitted in well, as you can see it is quite a good group. Some of the players knew me before I joined and they were talking to me on the phone to say, ‘please come to us’. I have settled in and am enjoying it.
“In football, for a player to be able to perform ,you must play for a club that wants you.
“If they call you to say, ‘come and join us’ then you have to go. I spoke to the owner of the team (David Thidiela) and the coach (Dylan Kerr), and we had a good chat.
“But it is not about me, it is about the group. I just want the team to do well. If I can score more goals then great, because that will help the team to achieve its goals.
“What we have said as a group is that we are tired of fighting relegation and want to finish in a respectable position, hopefully the top eight.”
Leopards are next in action away at Golden Arrows on January 5. — Supersport.com.
Online Reporter