Sekhukhune United welcome Milford to the New Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Saturday, with a spot in the Nedbank Cup semi‑finals at stake.
The Limpopo-based side heads into the cup tie after drawing 1-1 with Durban City FC in the Betway Premiership at Chatsworth Stadium earlier this week. Now their attention shifts to knockout football as they chase what would be their first major trophy in South Africa’s top flight.
Sekhukhune have already navigated two tricky fixtures against second-tier opposition on their way to the last eight, beating Highbury FC in the Round of 32 before overcoming AmaTuks in the Last 16 at Tuks Stadium.
READ: Eric Tinkler targets Nedbank Cup success to secure Sekhukhune’s CAF qualification
However, Tinkler believes the challenge posed by Milford could be even tougher. The KwaZulu-Natal outfit currently sits at the top of the Motsepe Foundation Championship standings and is pushing for promotion to the Premiership.
According to the veteran coach, cup matches against lower-league teams often become difficult because those players see the opportunity to prove themselves against top-flight opposition.
“I think obviously I’ve mentioned before about facing lower-division teams. Sometimes there is complacency from the PSL teams,” said Tinkler.
“What you do know is that those players playing for NFD teams are going to raise their game. They’re going to play with a lot of energy and effort because they all aspire to be where our players are.”
Tinkler added that simply having better players does not guarantee victory if his side fails to match the intensity of their opponents.
“If you don’t match their effort and energy, it’s going to be difficult. Quality doesn’t guarantee you anything – you have to match their effort,” he explained.
“We felt it against Highbury, we felt it against Tuks, but we managed to come through with positive results. This game against Milford won’t be different, especially since they’re top of the log, so it’s not going to be easy.”