“This was probably the best Derby the crowd will see for a long time,” says Kaizer Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter about the goalless draw against Orlando Pirates on Saturday afternoon. “Two teams went for the win, but, in the end, I am happy with the one point.”

“Pirates edged us in the first half,” admits the coach, who decided not to talk about the penalty that should have been awarded when early on George Lebese was brought down in the Buccaneers box. ”However, we changed some things at halftime and we really had a go at them during the first 20 minutes of the second half. We should have scored, but we didn’t and that’s when we lost some momentum.”

In the second half, the game was a joy to watch with both teams going for the goal. “We all got a bit too excited,” adds Baxter. “It was great for the spectators to watch, as it was transition-transition-transition… However, it was not good for the health of a coach, as we forgot to keep the organisation.”

The Amakhosi coach regretted that his players were unable to take the goalscoring opportunities that came their way, although he also stressed that this “phenomenon of South African strikers struggling to finish goes back to the youth development. Statistics show that there is a 80 percent higher chance of scoring if it happens with a one-touch. However, here, we prefer to have more ball touches before kicking at goal. That’s something that needs to be addressed at the youth development level.”

About Siphiwe Tshabalala’s form in his record-breaking 23rd Derby, since the introduction of the PSL, Baxter says: “Shabba was playing too deep in the first half and, as a result of this, he struggled to get upfront quick enough during the transition. He became more aggressive in the second half, doing great. Shabba is a fine player and if he does what he did today in the second half, he’s very difficult to play against.”

About the Soweto Derby being overhyped, he reacts: “When I came during my first stint in South Africa – as the Bafana Bafana coach – I saw some disappointing Derbies. Maybe it was a bit overhyped at the time and, as a consequence, the players struggled to deal with the pressure on matchday. However, in recent years, I have been involved in some pretty good Derbies. It’s getting better. Today, it was a very exciting Derby, despite the 0-0 result.”