Dondol Stars wary of hype ahead of Orlando Pirates clash

Pirates are widely considered among the top two most supported clubs in South Africa and, with the media hype around this game, there have been concerns that the ABC Motsepe League side’s players could be overwhelmed come matchday.

But this is not so, according to Rammoni, as they approach the quarterfinal against the Soweto giants at Peter Mokaba Stadium tomorrow afternoon (15h00).

"One, I would say, the players we have are obviously human beings before they can become soccer players, so there's no way that we can ever try as a team to block their excitement," said Rammoni.

"We allow them to be excited, but consistently remind them of the job we have at hand. And getting the recognition and media attention more than we did before we actually participated in this competition has actually demanded the next of us [sic].

"So, our players know that what we've done in the two previous [matches] has actually put us under more pressure, meaning we have to work three times [harder] than we did before we played against SuperSport United."

In their clashes against SuperSport United and Usuthu, the Mamelodi-based outfit scored in the second half, but against an in-form team like Pirates, Rammoni knows it won’t be ideal to wait that long to find the back of the net.

"I think it's a norm in football that most games, especially in competition, are more likely to open up in the second half. If I were to speak of Pirates, we think we know them by watching their previous encounters, but that doesn't mean they will come and do what we've been watching previously.

"They may come and apply different tactics and use different personnel than the ones we anticipated. So, basically now, in the first half, you try to manage and study them as quickly as possible, and then in the second half you obviously try and tweak one, two or three things within your structure, and they'll also do the same.

"That's why most of our goals are being scored in the second half, but it's not something that we say, we always plan that we'll look for a goal in the second half. If the opportunity comes in the first half, obviously, it'll be more delightful to take it."