Nkau urges Matlama to believe

Luciah Phahla

Maseru

Former Matlama captain Nkau Lerotholi has urged the team to ignore the pressure as the Vodacom Premier League title race reaches its climax this Saturday.

Lerotholi left Matlama for Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS) in January but said he is confident his childhood club can clinch the championship this weekend.

The odds are against Matlama, however.

They go into the final round of games one point behind Lioli and Lerotholi admitted TsePutsoa need a big favour from Linare who face ‘TseNala’ on the final day.

For their part, Matlama host Kick4Life in their last game of the season and Lerotholi said although the clash is a must-win, ‘TsePutsoa’ need to stick to their natural game.

“I have played for Matlama and I know when they want something they want it and work for it. They do have a chance to win; if they can win against Kick4Life and Lioli lose or draw against Linare they can win the championship,” Lerotholi told thepost on Tuesday.

He continued: “Matlama must not put themselves under pressure, they must play their normal game. This is a must-win game for them but it’s really difficult to say that they will win the league because if you look back, Lioli has been on top for the entire season. I doubt they would want to lose what they have been working hard for from the beginning. The fixture is tight on both sides.”

Matlama, who lost to Lioli two weeks ago, are in this position after they revived their title hopes with an assured 2-1 win over Lesotho Correctional Service (LCS) last Saturday while Lioli dropped two valuable points in a goalless draw with Rovers.

With the stakes now do-or-die, Lerotholi said he is pinning his hopes on Matlama’s exciting core of young talent.

Among them are the club’s leading scorers Motebang Sera, who has struck 13 league goals this season, and Jane ThabaNtšo who has 12 goals.

Combined, the Lesotho internationals have scored 25 goals of Matlama’s league-high 42 goals this season.

“I think their captain Phafa (Tšosane) has been leading the club well, you can also look at Jane, Rasta (Kefuoe Mahula) as well as Motebang Sera,” Lerotholi pointed out.

“Motebang has 13 goals and I think Jane has 12, that shows you they do score goals and that’s something they should continue doing this weekend. I think these are players that have been the best performers in that Matlama team for me this season,” he said.

Lerotholi, who was a central member of the last Matlama team to win the league in 2010, said he is also impressed with the club’s quality and performance this season compared to previous campaigns.

“I think they did well, in the past Matlama lost key players. I was the captain and was left alone but this season they played really well,” he stated.

“There is only one thing that Lioli beats Matlama with, Lioli has a large pool of players unlike Matlama. Lioli has their best starting team and if you look at their bench there are still good players. But, I also think Matlama’s starting team is strong as well. I trust them,” Lerotholi said.