The Buccaneers slipped to a 3-3 draw at home to Platinum Stars on Wednesday night, a result that all but ended their already slim chances of catching Kaizer Chiefs at the top of the Absa Premiership.
Pirates’ only real solace was that Mamelodi Sundowns also faltered, with a 1-1 draw at Mpumalanga Black Aces.
This means the gap between third-placed Pirates and Sundowns, in second place, remains at three points, though the Brazilians have a game in hand.
The Buccaneers must finish in the top two in the league to qualify for the Champions League.
Pirates are the only South African side left in continental club football this year after Chiefs and Sundowns both crashed out of the Champions League this weekend.
Bucs made it to the next round of the Caf Confederation Cup.
“I have stated that our objective is to get back into the Champions League,” said Tinkler, who was assistant coach when Pirates reached the Champions League final in 2013.
“We want to win the Caf Confederation Cup. There is a lot of importance there … it is a trophy we have never won. But if you ask me where I would prefer to be playing, it is in the Champions League.
“We would have preferred to have left tonight with three points – we would have been two points closer to Sundowns – but that didn’t happen.”
That Sundowns also drew was “possibly beneficial to us”, Tinkler added.
“We haven’t lost and for the confidence of the team, it helps to have that fighting spirit.”
If Tinkler was happy with the way his side fought back three times to draw with Stars, he was upset at a lack of urgency they showed in the first half-hour.
“We are reaching the final stages of the league and there are no easy games,” he said.
“For us, we are looking to finish as high as possible, so it was vitally important, especially at home to start with a high intensity.”
“We needed to match them [Stars], which we didn’t do in the first 30 minutes. We didn’t play with a high intensity and we were punished with a goal. We only woke up after that.”
