‘Terrified’ Ernst Middendorp describes win over Richards Bay as ‘crap’

Swallows head coach Ernst Middendorp says he was terrified by the performance of his troops despite a hard-fought 1-0 victory against a Richards Bay FC side that has proven a tough nut to crack.

Ernst Middendorp is of the view that Swallows put on a dreadful show during Friday night’s win at Dobsonville Stadium in Soweto.

“Let’s be honest, the first half was crap,” said Middendorp after handing second-placed Richards Bay their fourth defeat of the season.

Swallows striker Kagiso Malinga scored the only goal of the DStv Premiership encounter in the 79th minute, thanks to an assist from Lindokuhle Mtshali.

It was Middendorp’s second victory since taking over the coaching reigns at Swallows, who are fighting against relegation.

The win saw the Birds fly from position 15 to 12 after 19 league games. They now have accumulated 21 points from 19 matches and are six points above bottom-of-the-table Marumo Gallants.

WHY ERNST MIDDENDORP IS UNHAPPY DESPITE WIN

“We played a good game for 45 minutes. I was absolutely terrified to see our ball possession work that we’ve been doing now for weeks during training sessions. But it’s much better,” added Middendorp, who was clearly unhappy despite the crucial win.

“I have no explanation at this moment to see why I can say, okay, it’s stressful to stand in position 15, and you know you have to win, you see the other teams are moving ahead, and you have only one chance.

“But at the beginning of the week, we made it very clear they [Richards Bay] conceded only 10 goals, seven months now into the season and we knew it was not going to be an easy task and at the end, it was an important win for us.”

However, the Kaizer Chiefs coach is not jumping for joy as he strongly believe they need more than 30 points to avoid the axe.

“Believe me, 30 points for position 14/13 is not enough this season, you need more,” he said.

“If you think now, just because you have one win on our side, and you think you are out of the drop zone, sorry.

“If you are staying at the moment in position seven or eight, and you have 24 points, and you think you are in the paradise of the league, good night.”

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