Orlando Pirates have finalised their preparations for tomorrow's match without star midfielder Thembinkosi Lorch in their plans after he was suspended by the club.
Pirates will be up against Richards Bay FC at King Zwelithini Stadium as coach Jose Riveiro and the team will be aiming for a third successive win after beating Sekhukhune United and Kaizer Chiefs in their last two outings.
On Wednesday, Pirates announced that they have removed Lorch from all club activities until December 12.
This decision came after the 30-year-old was on Tuesday sentenced to three years imprisonment for assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm in the Randburg magistrate's court.
The sentence was wholly suspended for five years on condition that Lorch is not found guilty of committing a similar offence during the period of suspension.
Former Pirates striker James Mothibi says the team should forget about Lorch now and focus on the task to overcome the Natal Rich Boyz.
The Good
"Pirates will overcome Richards Bay and I have no doubt about it. That team isn't too much of a threat to Pirates and we should be able to deal with it. The last time we played against them, Pirates lost a lot of goal scoring opportunities and that's why I am saying they are not too much of a threat. With regards to the break that we are coming from, I don't think it will affect the momentum that the team was starting to enjoy. Instead, I think it gave the coach an opportunity to work on certain aspects to improve the team and to fix where he felt there was a need to fix," said Mothibi.
The Bad
"I don't want to dwell much on Lorch and his situation. The reason I don't want to say much on the issue is that it is a decision that has been made by the club and I don't want to be seen as meddling. As the club has suspended Lorch, we as former players and everybody else should respect that. The club knows why it has made such a decision and ours is to respect that and support," he said.
The Ugly
"Pirates is a big brand and for anything associated with the team, the club has a right to make a decision. From what I understand, what has been committed has a potential to dent the image of the club and hence the decision for a suspension. He is not the first one. We will miss him because he is a very good player. As for further details, we don't really know what happened and it is a legal matter that is being dealt with by the authorities. It's a sensitive issue that I don't want to comment much on, but we will miss him as one of our own. Only the office will be able to provide further details on the matter," he concluded.
Who should replace Lorch in Bucs' line-up?
