Milford coach Xanti Pupuma did not appear disheartened by his side’s loss to TS Galaxy in the Nedbank Cup semi-final at Solomon Mahlangu Stadium, saying his team has also benefited from luck in penalty shootouts in the past.
Milford put up a strong fight, taking the match to 120 minutes before the Betway Premiership side edged them 4-3 in a sudden-death penalty shootout.
Galaxy, who won the competition in 2019, will now face Durban City in the Ke Yona Cup final after the latter defeated Casric Stars on Saturday.
“We have had luck in penalties before,” Pupuma told SuperSport TV after the match.
“Maybe it was their turn. But I’m not disappointed with how we played.
“I think we represented ourselves quite well, but unfortunately we also had to consider the bigger picture [of securing promotion from the Motsepe Foundation Championship].
“I think the changes we made did affect the game. It took us a while to settle, and they managed to use that moment to score.
“It’s part of the game. It’s a decision we made before the match, so it’s not a disaster — I’m not stressed about it.”
The KwaZulu-Natal side, who currently top the Motsepe Foundation Championship standings, will now turn their full attention to their promotion push, with Casric Stars visiting their home ground on Wednesday.
“We will take a lot of positives,” he added.
However, Pupuma admitted his side could have wrapped up the game in regulation time, given the chances they created.
“Even in today’s game, the boys showed they can compete with PSL teams and perform at the required level.
“On another day, we could have finished the game in 90 minutes because we created enough chances.
“But that comes with time. It has been a long season, so I’m not too frustrated. This exit allows us to focus fully on promotion, and hopefully we can achieve it at the end of the day.”
