John Goliath
AMERICAN poker star Phil Ivey is considered to be the greatest cash-game player of all time.
Besides being able to read opponents and figuring out what cards they might be posturing with, he rarely shows any emotion as he methodically grinds his opponents into submission. He doesn’t even crack the slightest of smiles when he takes all of your chips after you tried to bluff him.
Ajax Cape Town coach Roger de Sa also tried to keep a straight face on Tuesday night when his side thumped a hapless Wits 3-1 at Athlone Stadium. It was the Urban Warriors’ third win in a row and pushed them to the top of the Premiership standings.
Of course, he must have felt like a million bucks on the inside. Who wouldn’t after such a great start to the season. And De Sa was certainly in a far better mental space on Tuesday night than his Wits counterpart, Gavin Hunt, who had one of his familiar meltdowns during the post-match press conference.
But such is the focus of De Sa that he gave this dead-bat answer when asked if their goals for the rest of the season had changed. “We need another 20 points to get to the magical 30-point mark and safety.” Last season, it took Ajax until the final few matches to get to 30 points.
Striker Nathan Paulse has been unstoppable after coming into the team against Mamelodi Sundowns. And the tall striker gives Ajax that extra dimension upfront as an ace targetman, who brings his midfielders beautifully into play.
It also helps that he can bang in the goals, with the beanpole striker scoring a brace against Wits, besides the fact that he owned their central defenders with his brutal physicality in and around the penalty area.
“Paulse was outstanding, and we played off him all night to set the platform for our midfielder to play off him,” De Sa said after the match.
Even Hunt also managed a kind word for Paulse.
“Nathan Paulse was magnificent. We tried to play football, but we were outmuscled from the long balls coming from the back to the front.”
Ajax’s players will be brimming with confidence heading into tomorrow night’s clash against former neighbours Chippa United in Port Elizabeth. The Chilli Boys started the new campaign off with a win, but have lost their last three matches, including a 3-0 defeat to Maritzburg United on Tuesday night.
However, De Sa is wary of a Chippa backlash at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
“I think it will be seen as a bit of a derby. Despite them playing in PE, there will be a lot of needle,” De Sa said.
De Sa, who became the first Ajax coach to win a match at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane earlier in the season, wants his team to get another scalp on the road.
“It’s important to be consistent on the road. I cant remember the last time we won two games on the road in a row, and maybe that is something we must target,” he said.
“It becomes more difficult when you are on top. When you are a champion boxer, everybody wants to take your crown. We are on top now and we have to be at our best.
“Those are the games that make you contenders, if you pick up points, then you can be up there fighting. But if you don’t pick up these points, it’s sad.”