Gunners' unsung hero

CHIPPA LEGODIMO
Correspondent | Friday March 19, 2010 00:00

 

Semakwezi and Christopher Ndayishime have been rightly showered with praises. But little credit has been given to the defence, which has ensured that the Peleng side concedes very few goals. The most outstanding player in the Gunners' rearguard is Emmanuel 'Agripa' Nlu, the towering former Township Rollers and Nico United defender. Though he lacks speed and his pencil-slim frame would make many assume he would be easy to beat, very few opponents have found their way past him. Previously, because of his lack of pace and indecisiveness, he often found himself badly exposed. But this season he is making good decisions most of the time. His good anticipation has meant that he makes up for his lack of pace and closes down speedy players before they could pull the trigger.

The defender has attributed his good form and that of his team to coach Daniel Nare's tactics. 'I am happy with my form so far. I have to admit this has been my best since I started playing in the Premier League. Chicco (Nare) has instilled self-belief in each and every player at Gunners. He is a good motivator who also easily picks up individuals' weakness and works on them. He would always tell you that there is room for improvement and this has really worked for me this season, my game has improved,' Nlu said. Under Nare, he has learnt that one does not need pace to mark speedy strikers. 'Look, I do not have pace but I can do the job better now. The coach has taught me to always be first on the ball because unlike defenders like Mathousand (Finki Mothibi), I cannot track back effectively so I have to ensure that my man does not receive the ball and if he does, I would not allow him to turn and face me,' he said.

Among what can be considered Gunners' achievements this season has been the two victories registered against ECCO City Greens, a team that has always given them headache. On Sunday, Gunners booted ECCO out of the Coca-Cola Cup. 'Everybody is still jubilant after that victory. We beat them in the first round and people said it was a fluke. When they beat us in the return game, it was as if to confirm those claims and no one expected us to beat them in their own backyard in the Coca-Cola Cup,' he said. He asserted that most players at Gunners have been at the club for many years without achieving anything and all of them are determined to make history.