Tuks will be on a mission tomorrow when they take to the field to play UWC at home in the Varsity Football Tournament’s first semifinal (17:00).
And with good reason. It has been eight years since Tuks last played the final. 2017 was also the last time Tuks had won the tournament. Interestingly, UWC is the only team that has beaten Tuks in this tournament. They did so on Tuks’s home turf, winning 2–1.
Tuks’s players are, however, not too fazed by the result. To them, it was a bad day at the office. They know they can be better.
“The loss was just a mistake. We outplayed UWC in the last game. They are one of the stronger teams in the tournament but not on the same level as us. We will show it tomorrow,” Jayden van der Walt (goalkeeper) said.
According to him, the reason why Tuks topped the log after the pool games is to use his words: “We are a team that does not panic, and we have patience, which helps everyone on the team stay fully focused and ready for whatever happens in the game.”
To which SamukeloNgodela added – “One mistake we can’t make is let UWC get comfortable. They are only a difficult team to play because they don’t take many risks. They go directly and force us to make mistakes that can be avoided.”
To Joshua Woods, the loss against UWC is a painful memory that still rankles him.
“But it is not only me. It is a painful memory for the whole team. We did not do justice to fans who watched from the sidelines. The good that came from the loss is that it serves as a motivation. We don’t want to feel the way we did after the UWC game.
“Last week against TUT, we were not playing at our best. Still, we won and got the three points. That excites me. It proves that we are a team with character. We back each other and play for each other. More play to make everyone at Tuks proud.”
Quinten Stokes-Waller ascribes Tuks topping the log to the team’s ability to keep control of the ball, staying composed and waiting for the right opportunity to score.
“We also don’t only play one-way. At any given time, if needed, we switch our game plan to keep our opponents under pressure. As to tomorrow’s game, I don’t think there is a reason to treat it differently, as it is a semifinal.”
Ntokozo Madela believes their direct way of play makes it challenging to play against UWC.
“They don’t take risks on their ‘own ball’. Their strength is going with long balls and then trying to win the ball back in our half and capitalising on our mistakes. The one thing that might sink UWC is their fitness. They ran out of steam in the first game towards the end.”
Paballo said that Tuks have been playing an exciting and dynamic style of football.
“Most of us are ball players. There is nothing we love more than to have the ball at our feet, and when we do have it, it makes it difficult to play against us.”