JOHANNESBURG - Kaizer Chiefs striker Bernard Parker says they “must do the business,” when they face Stellenbosch in Saturday’s Nedbank Cup 16 fixture at Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium (start 8.15pm).
“The Nedbank Cup is an opportunity to win silverware for the club, the coach and ourselves, as players,” said Parker on Friday.
The Chiefs striker feels that Stellenbosch have a good squad and are “potentially a PSL side”, despite being only in ninth position on the National First Division (NFD) log. “They have a good coach (Steve Barker) and some fine players with a lot of energy. They usually play in a 3-5-2 system.”
Parker does stress that the first division side mustn’t be underestimated. “We have to be in the right frame of mind,” he points out.
“We need to be ready mentally, especially as this will be their biggest game of the season. Playing against Chiefs is for them like a cup final.”
The 31-year-striker also reacted to Amakhosi only having scored 20 goals in 23 league matches.
“We have to do the business as a team – it shouldn’t be based on individuals. It’s not only up to the strikers to score goals.
"For example, I played most of my career at the number 10 position, giving so many assists for others to score. However, on top of that, I scored a lot of goals. If a striker doesn’t score, it’s up to the midfielders and even defenders to help out.”
Talking about the opportunity to win the Nedbank Cup, Parker says: “We have to be careful not to put too much pressure on ourselves.
"We just have to keep it simple and take it one game at a time. Our focus must be going past Stellenbosch to reach the quarterfinal.”