Antipas concedes title, tips FC Platinum

Sport
The Gamecocks led the way in the title race for the better part of the campaign, but two straight defeats in their last two matches have severely dented their chances.

BY HENRY MHARA CHICKEN Inn coach Joey Antipas says his side cannot continue to lose games if they want to win the league title this season, as he admits Fc Platinum are now firm favourites to win their fourth league title in a row.

The Gamecocks led the way in the title race for the better part of the campaign, but two straight defeats in their last two matches have severely dented their chances.

Fc Platinum, in contrast, have won all their last six games to establish a considerable lead at the top of the log standings.

The defending league champions are five points ahead of Chicken Inn and eight clear of third-placed Dynamos who they face at the National Sports Stadium today.

Antipas said he has shelved any thoughts of the title for now, insisting his focus is to halt the team’s losing streak.

“For now we can’t think about the title,” Antipas told StandardSport. “All we have to think now is to try and win our games because you cannot win titles by losing games so we have to find a way to start winning our games again. We have played two games we haven’t scored and if you don’t score then you don’t win, it’s as simple as that.”

Chicken Inn’s next match is a city derby against an equally struggling Bulawayo Chiefs at Luveve Stadium this afternoon.

“What we have to think about our game and try to rectify it. We have to improve. What we have to think about now is winning our games because I believe if we can start winning again it gives us a better chance. We have to regroup and organize ourselves for the next assignment,” said the former Warriors coach who confessed he will need to reflect on what has gone wrong at his team in recent weeks.

But with Fc Platinum and Dynamos playing each other this weekend, there is a chance for Chicken Inn to close the gap.

However, that can only happen if FC Platinum fail to win the match.

“Fc Platinum are doing great, they are in a rich vein of form,” admitted Antipas. “They are the team to beat so for us we can’t even think about the championship now. All we have to think about is winning our games.”

Chicken Inn will go into today’s match as favourites against a side they have dominated in the few times that they have met.

When the two sides last met in the reverse fixture earlier in the season, Antipas’ men won 2-1 with Brian Muza and Shepherd Mhlanga scoring for the 2015 league champions.

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