This is the view of Jomo Cosmos chairman and head coach, Jomo Sono, whose team is battling to avoid the axe at the end of the season with five games remaining.

Sono was speaking after the goalless draw against Maritzburg United at the Rand stadium on Tuesday afternoon. This, because fellow relegation candidates Mpumalanga Black Aces were only due to play their Premiership match against Bidvest Wits today (Wednesday) with the benefit of knowing what is expected of them to stay above water and one up on Cosmos.

The troublemaker –- as Sono was known in his playing days –- said: “There is no problem with the arrangement, although it obviously would have been ideal to have such teams playing at the same time.

"I am not overly worried because at the same time the way it stands could work out in other ways too. After playing against Maritzburg United and salvaging a draw, it means we are now one point above them and the pressure is now on the other foot.

They must worry about their game against Wits and its outcome. We have always had Aces as our target because we are aiming at avoiding automatic relegation. The play-offs give 15th-positioned teams a chance to fight for another bite at the apple. The National First Division this season is not as strong as it was the other season, we can negotiate our way back.

“I told my players at the beginning of the season that it was going to be tough as we had many youngsters and new players coming on board. It was not going to be easy to gel into a team and settle down quickly. Our aim this season is to avoid relegation and then challenge for a top eight position in the next season. It is still our plan.”

Asked how many points he hoped to get from the 15 available in the remaining five games, Sono boldly said, “the whole lot”.

He believes the goalless draw against Maritzburg United was fair in that the break had taken it’s toll on the players.

“We played very well in the first half because we had hoped for an early goal to unsettle them. We missed a couple of chances and then we faded from the middle of the second half. One could see that the players were going through the motions by then. Fatigue had caught up with both teams.”

Questioned on the team’s chances against Kaizer Chiefs this weekend, Sono said that it is going to be different from the Maritzburg United game in that no player needs motivation against teams like Chiefs.

“The fixture itself is a motivation for any team or player. That is going to be a different ball game altogether and we are all looking forward to it.”

Cosmos hope to have top goal scorer, Sekou Camara, back after a two-month lay-off due to injury. Aces will play Amazulu the day after the Cosmos / Chiefs encounter.

<< Back