FERNANDEZ: DURBAN DERBY – AN OPPORTUNITY WE MUST GRAB WITH BOTH HANDS

Durban City FC’s preparations are in full swing for the electric KwaZulu-Natal derby against AmaZulu FC at the Moses Mabhida Stadium this Saturday, with the team’s growing unity and defensive solidity forming the bedrock of their confidence.

Goalkeeper coach Rowen Fernandez pointed to the collective spirit within the squad as a key driver of their steady progress, which sees The Citizens sitting fourth in the Betway Premiership.

“The team are building more and more unity every day,” Fernandez said. “We’ve got a nice unit of boys here and we want keep that togetherness together.”

Fernandez highlighted the specific defensive work that has yielded five clean sheets so far this campaign.

“We want to keep our tightness at the back and we’ve been doing a lot of that work in training, just focusing on defensive stability, defensive units,” he explained. “The less goals you concede, the more chance you have of winning games.”

Ahead of the high-intensity derby, Fernandez emphasised a mindset that treats the pressure as a privilege.

“Every day we remind [the players] that it’s a blessing to be doing this job… and a derby is an opportunity we must grab with both hands,” he said. “You want the bragging rights of Durban.”

For Fernandez, the measure of a successful performance is unequivocal, reflecting his specific role and the team’s overarching ambition.

“We want to keep winning and we want to keep ourselves in a good position and the only way to do that is by winning games and keeping clean sheets.”