Larsen setting baby step targets for high-flying Golden Arrows

Having won the league’s first coach of the month award and with his team sitting pretty in second place after eight matches‚ you might expect Clinton Larsen now to get carried away targeting a league title challenge for Golden Arrows.

But that is exactly the opposite of what Larsen is thinking. All that the Arrows coach wants is to amass as many points as quickly as possible‚ with the coach having set his first target as the mythical mark for surviving relegation.

“What we are trying to do is to first get to 30 points as quickly as possible‚” said Larsen on Wednesday after his side held leaders Baroka FC to a 1-1 draw away in Polokwane.

“Then you look at your next target which is the top eight. And once you have achieved that depending on how many games are left then you look at another target.”

Arrows are yet to taste defeat in the league so far after five draws and three wins‚ second only to Baroka following Wednesday night’s unlikely top of the table clash‚ who have fours wins and four draws.

Mamelodi Sundowns‚ who have three games in hand‚ are now the only side who can overtake Baroka at the top to win the first quarter’s R1‚5 million Q-Innovation prize for season's first eight matches.

If Arrows sustain the form that they have shown so far they will easily reach Larsen’s target by the halfway mark of the race for the PSL title.

“We take it step by step. Like I said we’re not obsessed about winning Q‚ as much as it would have been nice to have done it. We just want to try and give our best performance every time we got out there‚” Arrows’ coach said.

“I think that for any team outside of the big five their first priority is to get to 30 points. That will put you out of relegation fight.”

Larsen has attributed his team’s consistency so far to their efficient preseason.

Baroka top the log on 16 points from eight matches with Arrows in second place‚ two points adrift.

Arrows will have a chance to cut the gap and possibly claim the number one spot when they host Polokwane City at the Princess Magogo Stadium on Saturday afternoon.