Richards Bay hold Pirates to goalless draw at King Zwelithini Stadium

Indecision continued to rob Orlando Pirates of valuable points in the DStv Premiership as they played to a 0-0 draw against struggling Richards Bay FC in Umlazi, Durban, on Saturday.

Pirates are battling to score goals this season and came to this match having found the back of the net just twice in their 1-0 victories over Sekhukhune United and Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto derby just before the international break early this month.    

That trend continued in this match as Jose Riveiros’ team played good football but displayed poor decision-making with the ball in the final third which saw the Buccaneers sharing the spoils for the fourth time this season in 11 league matches. 

In total, Pirates have dropped 17 points from a possible 33.

Patrick Maswanganyi, Vincent Pule, Deon Hotto, Evidence Makgopa and Relebogile Mofokeng were all guilty of not putting Pirates ahead in the first stanza of this match. 

These players hardly tested their former teammate Jackson Mabokgwane in the home side’s goals as they dilly dallied and often lost possession around the area when they had plenty of time and space to shoot.

The home side had instead produced better attempts to score in the first half, with Yanela Mbuthuma and Thulani Gumede having three shots on target for their team. 

Gumede was the closest to opening the scoring in the 31st minute, his ground shot brilliantly kept out by Pirates keeper Melusi Buthelezi.

Pirates nearly conceded an own goal in the first half when their skipper Tapelo Xoki had poor communication with Melusi Buthelezi resulting in Xoki’s back pass that almost gifted Bay an early lead.

But generally, the football played here was not effective. Bay tried to catch Pirates on the counter while Pirates couldn’t hurt the home side despite their dominance of possession (69% in the first half).   

Pirates’ bluntness in front of goals is also reflected in the fact that they’ve only scored one goal a game in their 11 league matches in which they have striker Zakhele Lepasa as their top scorer with just three strikes.   

Pirates had Makgopa as a focal point of their attack but often failed to decide when to shoot when they managed to break into Bay’s danger area.

Riveiro introduced Kabelo Dlamini and Monnapule Saleng for Makgopa and Mofokeng in the 65th minute in an attempt to improve his attacking option, but the situation remained the same.

Xoki had Pirates’ first better shot on goal in the 67th minute, but his well-taken free kick was parried away by Mabokgwane.

While Bay may appreciate this point even though it keeps them second from the bottom, for Pirates it’s another indication of their inconsistency as they remain in eighth spot and eight points behind log leaders Mamelodi Sundowns who have three games in hand.

Getting his attackers firing should be uppermost in Riveiro’s mind as he gets more than a week to prepare for Bucs' next league match against their Soweto rivals Moroka Swallows on December 5.

For Bay, the point is a vital one for coach Kaitano Tembo as it gives him some breather ahead of his side’s Carling Knockout Cup semifinal clash against Stellenbosch FC here next Saturday.