Cape Town City coach sees a major improvement in Orlando Pirates this season and expects a tough tussle in the DStv Premiership on Tuesday but insists his beleaguered team are going to Soweto looking for a win.

City started the season well but head to the Orlando Stadium on the back of three successive defeats, including elimination from the MTN8.

Last season, City beat Pirates 2-1 at home but then lost by the same score in the reverse league fixture. Overall the two teams have drawn half of their 16 previous clashes with four wins apiece.

“This season, Pirates are a very, very good team, and massive threat going forward. So defensively, we're going to have to be structured, organised. But you know, we got to go there and play without fear.

“You know, they are a good team this season although the results haven't been as good as they had hoped themselves, I definitely see a massive improvement from them from last season to this. So it's not going to be an easy match away from home.”

Tinkler said his players were perhaps guilty of not turning it on for the matches against supposedly inferior opposition and keeping their best for the tougher games.

“That is one of our biggest issues, so do I have fear going into the Pirates game? No, because we've beaten them before, we can beat them again.

“I firmly believe that and that's going to be the mentality from now until we play them next is to prepare ourselves the best way possible to go and compete.

“As a coach, I've never ever gone into any game thinking I can get a point. With every single game plan, I go there with the idea that I want to to collect all three points and even more so now because we've put ourselves under pressure by not collecting the three points in our last match against Sekhukhune United,” Tinkler added.