SAZI HADEBE | The only consistent thing about Pirates is their inconsistency

It’s amazing how little opportunity we get to write about one of South Africa’s biggest and oldest football clubs, Orlando Pirates. I normally get some supporters, especially Kaizer Chiefs fans, accusing me of saying too little about Pirates, especially their flaws.

That’s debatable because I try as much as I can to not forget this famous Soweto side. In fact, I can’t ignore them even if I wanted to. But maybe it is partly because of that accusation that I wanted to dedicate this space today to the Buccaneers.

What’s going wrong and what’s going right at this club?

Well, what went right, especially last year when Pirates were celebrating their 95th anniversary, is they at least won the MTN8 trophy — a piece of silverware the club has used to paper over so many cracks. It was such a pity that the MTN8 and 95th anniversary celebrations didn't extend to a bigger gig, where former club legends such as Jomo Sono and many other stalwarts, including Chiefs supremo Kaizer Motaung, could have been invited.

I thought it was a lost opportunity for this iconic brand. But perhaps I’m wrong, something big is being brewed somewhere in Orlando. Maybe everything is being reserved for the club’s centenary in five years’ time.

Let’s hope some of the old great players who’ve worn the Buccaneers jersey will still be alive to witness and celebrate that centenary milestone.

Let's quickly move to the current season where fans will be disappointed with their run in the league.

First, this team under new Spanish coach Jose Riveiro has been inconsistent when it comes to league form. But that’s nothing new. Pirates have been rolling that way since they last won the league title in May 2012. That’s almost 11 years now. Inconsistency seems to be the name of the game at Pirates. There are inconsistencies in players who are bought or released by the club, in coaches who are hired, in the way they play on the field and of course in their starting line-up.

They (Pirates) seem to sign players for the sake of it, not because of any thorough background checks. It’s a case of hit and miss.

Let’s take for instance that Pirates have signed 13 players this season, the latest being a 22-year-old Cameroonian striker Souaibou Marou. Interestingly Marou arrives at a time when Pirates are looking to offload countryman Bienvenu Eva Nga, 29, a striker Pirates signed from Chippa United at the beginning of this campaign. In less than a season they’ve realised they’ve signed a dud in Nga.

But Nga is not the first player to be deemed surplus to requirements at Pirates a few months after being signed. Who knows, maybe Marou will be next. That’s how Pirates roll. They seem to sign players for the sake of it, not because of any thorough background checks. It’s a case of hit and miss.

With that comes the misfiring on the field where Pirates will be looking for their first third successive win in the league this season when they visit bottom-placed Marumo Gallants in Limpopo on Saturday. Don’t bet on Pirates winning against Gallants despite their impressive-looking home wins over Lamontville Golden Arrows (3-1) and Stellenbosch FC (4-1) in their last two matches — which was also the first time that Riveiro’s team have won two league matches on the spin this season.

Pirates’ other glaring inconsistency this season is their scoring. While they’ve managed to score seven goals from seven different players (Monnapule Saleng, Terrence Dzvukamanja, Vincent Pule, Thabang Monare, Innocent Maela, Kermit Erasmus and Phillip Ndlondlo) in their last two matches, they had only managed only 10 strikes in their first 15 games of the season.

Perhaps the arrival of Scott Chickelday as the new strikers’ coach at Pirates is solving their goalscoring woes. Whether Chickelday is indeed making a difference will be proven in the coming weeks and months, when Pirates will be pushing to finish at least second behind runaway log leaders Mamelodi Sundowns and qualify for next year’s Caf Champions League.

On paper, Pirates have a squad that could have challenged Sundowns this season. But because they’ve had no standard winning formula and system with which they play, Pirates look like any ordinary PSL team.

The pity of Pirates not qualifying for Champions League next season will leave SA with another weak and inexperienced club in this competition, as we’ve seen in the past two seasons with AmaZulu FC and Cape Town City.

That SA continues to have two slots in the Champions League is mainly because of Sundowns, who have consistently reached group and knockout stages of this competition in recent years.

Pirates victory over Gallants on Saturday is not only crucial because it will at least help them maintain their current fourth position on the log, but because it will give them some momentum going into the two crucial fixtures against Sundowns on February 4 and Chiefs on February 25. Winning both these matches will cement Pirates’ claim for the second spot, but if they allow these clubs to complete a double over them, this season will become another wasted one for Riveiro’s team.

If only those at Pirates could understand what it takes to be consistent. That’s the main difference between Pirates and other big and successful clubs in the world.