For the second time in three months, John Maduka's Bloemfontein Celtic side came agonisingly close to cup success after their loss to Orlando Pirates on Saturday. But where did it go wrong for Siwelele against the Buccaneers?
Read: Rest In Peace Motjeka Madisha!
Celtic had the perfect start to the match at the Moses Mabhida stadium as they found themselves 1-0 up after only three minutes thanks to some ingenuity from Siphelele Luthuli in the box. However, the side from Mangaung took their foot off the pedal and soon found themselves level when Deon Hotto equalized, before Thembinkosi Lorch sealed the result for Pirates.
Speaking to the media after the match, Celtic coach Maduka shared where he thought his side fell short against the Buccaneers.
"We started the game very well until we got that goal and that was the whole plan, to get a goal early. After we got that goal, we had a couple of chances that could've finished the game, but we did not. Then we changed a little bit, instead of playing our passing game and creating so many chances, we did not do that and started giving the ball to them. We also didn't make the right decision at certain times, especially in the final third."
Read: Lorch: MTN8 Title The Remedy For A 'Difficult' Year
The 50-year-old also refused to point fingers at his players, particularly Ronald Pfumbidzai, who was sent off for his challenge on Lorch which led to Pirates' second goal.
"Look, we are a team that wins as a team and we lose as a team. It is a game of mistakes. You can't blame a player because he has made a mistake. I'm sure it was not his intention to make a mistake. He was maybe trying to do something and before he made a mistake, there was probably a mistake made somewhere else so when we lose like this, we lose as a team and when we win, we win as a team," Maduka added.
Click through the gallery for all the images from the wild celebrations at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
