The Buccaneers progressed to the next round of the CAF Confederation Cup after a 2-2 away draw in Uganda.
MATCH REPORT: Pirates progress after URA draw
Matlaba took to Twitter after the match to dispel the myth that the earlier rounds in African competitions are easy games.
"So proud of the team, it's not easy. Any away game in CAF is an uphill battle, even of you win the first leg," Matlaba tweeted.
"People are fast to say URA is a small team but they are important Ko Uganda. It's not a mickey mouse team. They fought to be here.
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"In CAF it's not enough to win at home and think you made it. Even 3-1 at home is not enough. Look when we went to Mazembe, they played...
"Look now at URA, this so-called small team gave us a tough time. People must understand, ke ntwa outside there. Re buwa re utlwile."
Pirates will play against the winner between CF Mounana (Gabon) and Power Dynamos (Zambia) in the second round.