Brandts blames scorching Dar heat for draw

APR’s Dutch coach Ernie Brandts has pointed out scorching heat in Dar es salaam as reason for their draw against Burundi’s Olympic Atletico on Tuesday.“It is always hot playing at 2pm and you would notice that in the second half, the speed reduced drastically. I tend to think that fatigue crept in too fast on the boys and they could not keep up with the pace. “Also both teams were cautious, no one wanted to make mistakes because it was a very important match.”Brandts is optimistic that they have one foot into the quarter finals but need to beat Yanga to guarantee their qualification.“Yanga lost their opener against Atletico and beat Wau Salaam. They will be out to prove something and also redeem their faces for the sake of their fans. We will be ready to handle them,” added Brandts.Both APR and Atletico have four points from two matches but the three-time champions sit on top of Group C with a better goal difference. APR will next face Yanga on Friday while Atletico will play fellow debutants Wau Salaam of South Sudan on Thursday.

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Brandts blames scorching Dar heat for draw