University of Pretoria eyeing 2009 repeat: Kwanele Kopo on giant-slaying and Nedbank Cup glory

“If we want to win this tournament, if we want to get to the final, we have to win the game on Sunday.”

To some, Kwanele Kopo may have been stating the obvious. But the discerning football fan would have fully understood the real meaning behind the University of Pretoria coach’s words. Granted, victory over Sekhukhune United in this afternoon’s Nedbank Cup Round of 16 will simply provide passage into the quarter-finals for the Motsepe Foundation Championship side.

But in the bigger scheme of things, it will be a massive statement of intent by the lower-division team to the rest of the remaining clubs that they mean business. Beat the Betway Premiership outfit and the spirit of 2009 could well be invoked. And that’s exactly what Kopo was referring to.

“The Nedbank Cup has these opportunities that it gives to the small teams, to the underdogs. In 2009, Tuks made it all the way to the final, so maybe it might be that as much as we're struggling in the league, we can cause one or two upsets in the Nedbank Cup.”

Those 17 years ago, AmaTuks slayed some elite league giants — Kaizer Chiefs being one of them — en route to contesting the final against Moroka Swallows. It was a tournament that saw players such as Andile Jali announce themselves before going on to become major local stars.

“The kit manager was telling me this week that, ‘Coach, when Tuks got to the final in 2009, at this stage of the tournament, we played a PSL team.’ So we are hoping that history will repeat itself. And we are working towards that. We can't just hope, but we are also working towards that.

“To be successful, you have to go through the hardest journey. And the first part of that hardest journey we've done, to travel to Upington for 10 hours and travel back. It had its effect in the following week. It takes a long time to recover from that trip.

"Now, this is our second hardest challenge of a PSL team. And it doesn't come any harder than a top-three team. And that's what makes champions.”

With the big guns now all out, there is truth in Kopo’s statement that victory over Sekhukhune United could pave a way to the final and tournament success.

In other matches on Sunday, Milford host Mkhambathi FC and Jacksa Spears take on Vasco da Gama.

Matshelane Mamabolo is a veteran football reporter and currently senior contributor at Independent Media