With a series of bad results and the team sinking further into relegations, there surely were some growls at Steve Barker at Stellenbosch FC.
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But it turns out that is the kind of situation that Barker revels in, and he showed it when he guided his side to a come-from-behind 3-2 win over Cape Town City on Friday.
It looked like Cape Town City were having their way with Barker’s side when they took a 2-0 lead in the 41st minute of the game.
Stellies had been toothless for a number of games anyway and City coach Eric Tinkler must have thought the points were in the bag.
The trouble for Barker’s side started in the fifth minute when Lorenzo Gordinho put City ahead five minutes into the game.
Darwin Gonzalez doubled the lead in the 41st minute. But two minutes later, Devon Titus pulled one back and brought Stellies back into the game.
And whatever Barker barked into the heads of his players at half time worked as they worked even harder in the second half.
And just eight minutes into the second stanza, Titus completed his brace when he scored an equaliser that set the game for a thrilling finish.
Mngomezulu snatches the points for Stellies
It was second half substitute Snethemba Mngomezulu who ensured Stellies curb their losing run with a winner six minutes to the end.
“There is alway pressure and it is part of football. That is the nature of the game,” Barker told the media after the game.
“But you know it is about responding to the pressure, about embracing the pressure and not running from it.
“It is about facing it straight on and that is me. The tougher the going gets, the more I come out fighting… and so did the team.”
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The win saw Stellies stabilise a little and move to 12th position on the DStv Premiership standings with 20 points off 19 games.
“The character they showed today was very strong. But there is still pressure, we are nowhere near where we want to be.
“Hopefully this will be a catalyst to us turning our season around in a positive way,” added the former AmaZulu FC mentor.
Barker will hope for the same fighting spirit from his side when they meet the unpredictable Chippa United in their next game.
