Lying second from the bottom on the log with no victories, there is an uphill battle for FNB UJ as they face defending champions FNB NWU in round five of the 2024 FNB Varsity Cup.
UJ assistant coach RJ Liebenberg wants to ensure they finish in a position that affirms their return to the competition next year.
“We want to make sure we end in a position where we secure next year’s season. So, our goal is already there. There’s no need to motivate the players because the reality is that staying bottom two you can face promotion/relegation. We need to make sure we end in a position where we will be comfortable to plan for the next year.
With only a handful of matches left, Liebenberg says the Orange Army strive to approach the remaining fixtures step by step.
“Our approach changes to a ‘game to game’ approach. Our goal is to reach the semi-finals. We have regrouped, replanned and now take it week by week. We don’t want to think three games ahead.”
According to Liebenberg, the Eagles are known for their exceptional momentum, therefore that is a factor of the game that UJ will try to minimize.
“We tried to identify what their strengths and weaknesses are. For us, NWU (Eagles) is a team that plays well with momentum. If we can prevent them from generating any momentum, we’ll find ourselves with a great opportunity to win the game.
“We believe in consistency even though we’ve been on the losing side of things. Some of the players have been consistent with their performance. I doubt there will be plenty of changes. We’ll assess, look at the injury report and availability and then decide on that.”
by Karabo Peter
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