News24.com | Mokwena makes 'no excuses' after Stellies stun Sundowns in Nedbank Cup: 'They were better'

Rhulani Mokwena (Gallo Images)

At Athlone Stadium, Cape Town

• Mamelodi Sundowns suffered a knock out defeat to Stellenbosch in the Nedbank Cup, with coach Rhulani Mokwena accepting the result with "grace and humility".
• Sundowns took the lead in the first half, but Stellenbosch rallied to score two goals in the second half and secure the win.
• Despite the loss, Mokwena praised his players' performance throughout the season and acknowledged the challenges they face in preparing for matches.

Mamelodi Sundowns head coach, Rhulani Mokwena, accepted their Nedbank Cup defeat to Stellenbosch with "a lot of grace and humility" and conceded that the better team won at Athlone Stadium on Saturday.

The Brazilians were seeking to end a streak of four draws in five matches since being confirmed DStv Premiership champions at the start of April, but the Cape Winelands outfit had other ideas on the day.

READ | Nedbank Cup: Sizzling Stellenbosch end Sundowns' treble-winning dreams, Pirates push past Dondol

It was a lead that took the Brazilians into half-time, but three minutes into the second half, Stellies shifted into fourth gear, and Iqraam Rayners dazzled his way past yellow shirts to level the score.

The 27-year-old completed his brace nine minutes later with a brilliant finish as Stellies put in a commanding second-half display, ending Sundowns' hopes of winning a treble of trophies as they continue to hunt for CAF Champions League honours.

“Congratulations to Stellenbosch. In sport, when the opposition is better than you, with a lot of humility and grace, you accept the result and move on. For most parts of the game, I thought they were better,” a dejected Mokwena told reporters at Athlone Stadium on Saturday.

"We lost a lot of the duels, and it was just very difficult [for us] to find a bit of rhythm in our passes. They forced us into mistakes, and we made two big mistakes, and they punished us."

But despite the defeat, Mokwena remains "proud" of his players and what they have achieved this season.

"What they have done this season has been incredible. And as I've said to you so many times, I sit here as a coach. I'm more proud of them than I ever have been because despite the pressures, despite how difficult it is, it's very tough at the moment.

"We play against every opponent who has time to prepare for us. We only have one or two days to prepare for an opponent. [Whereas] opponents only play one game a week.

"So, of course, the element of freshness comes in, and you could see it in certain moments today. Tactically, they have time to review and come up with plans and solutions. You can see it also with all the opposition that we have played so far.

"But it's not for us to find excuses. There are no excuses. We have to win football matches, and when we don't win, we have to see why we didn't win," Mokwena conceded.

Sundowns will board a flight to Algeria early next week for their Champions League clash against CR Belouizdad in Algiers on Saturday, 22 April.