John Maduka takes confidence from Pirates draw

The 1-1 draw came amid a tough period in which Royal have been struggling to secure a win in their last four outings.

Substitute Menzi Masuku caught his former team with a sucker punch right at the death, as he headed home a Jabulani Ncobeni cross 10 minutes after entering the pitch.

Despite more dropped points, Maduka believes the result against an on-form Pirates side should lift the confidence going into their final two matches of the season.

"Good point for us to give us confidence, especially getting a point from a team like Pirates. It gives us confidence going into our next match. Yes, we've been lacking consistency in the team. There are games that we have lost that we were not supposed to lose because of our mistakes, something that we have to improve," he said.

With top eight a very realistic goal this season, Maduka has highlighted the need to remain in control of their own fate, rather than relying on results of others.

"It will be good for us to finish top 8, so it's something that we are trying to target to get there. The league is very difficult but we still believe with the point that we got today and looking at the remaining matches. One we are playing at home, the other one of course is a derby, difficult game as well but we do have the squad. We just need to win our games."