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Chiefs aim for cup win No. 2 this week Posted: Thursday November 29, 2001 3:52 PM
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -- Top South African club Kaizer Chiefs go in search of their second trophy success in a week as they host InterClube of Angola in the second leg of the African Cup Winners' Cup in Johannesburg on Saturday. Chiefs forced a 1-1 draw away in Luanda in the first leg of the final a fortnight ago and last Saturday won the South African League Cup with a convincing 5-0 thrashing of Jomo Cosmos in Johannesburg. Coach Mushin Ertugral believes his club are capable of a clean sweep of the trophies available to them this season, having already won two in the new South African season with two more to play for, including the premier league title. "You have to believe it is attainable otherwise you shouldn't be out there competing. If I didn't believe we could win them all then I'd rather be a taxi driver of something," said Turkish-born Ertugral. Chiefs took the Top Eight Cup at the start of the season in August and set a new record score line for a domestic cup final against Cosmos last Saturday. But the Cup Winners' Cup has been a bit of an afterthought for the club and as a result they have several key players unavailable for the second leg at Ellis Park this Saturday. Chiefs failed to register most of their pre-season signings in time for the latter stages of the continental competition, where they have surprised even their most ardent fans with a quarter-final win over Ismailia of Egypt and then victory against Tunisia's Club Africain in the semifinals. To add to their woes both Isaac Mabotsa, sent off in the first leg, and Patrick Mbuthu, who picked up a second yellow card, are both suspended for the second leg while defender Gary Goldstone is doubtful. "I have 15 players available which is a little better than in the semifinal where I had 13 to choose from," said Ertugral on Thursday. Inter, who are the police team from the Angolan capital, must win on Saturday to have any chance to taking their first continental title. They are playing in African club competition for only the second time but have been impressive in attack and already won twice away from home in this year" s Cup Winners" Cup. "We are going to go all out, but without compromising our defense. We'll look to be patient and then seize on our opportunities," said team coach Oliviera Goncalves on Thursday. Inter have been in South Africa for a week acclimatizing to the altitude of Johannesburg, which has also been a factor in favor of the home team. "Chiefs are a good team with a lot of pace and well organized. But we just need to win by one goal to take the trophy back to Angola," he added. For that, Inter look to Congolese import Pathy Nsele Esengo who has scored six goals in the last four games in the competition, to make him the Cup Winners' Cup's leading marksman. The match will be officiated by experienced Egyptian referee Gamal El Ghandour.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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