Bizana plan for mighty battle in Cup playoffs
As ABC Motsepe League club prepare for the Nedbank Cup playoffs on Saturday, Bizana Pondo Chiefs aims to dominate their group after having a good start to their league campaign.
Last season EC Bees made it into the competition’s last 16 teams where they went on to play against former African champions, Mamelodi Sundowns and lost 2-1 at Loftus Versfeld Stadium.
This year third-tier teams have been drafted into four groups. Group 1, which will play at NU2 Stadium in Motherwell, houses Swartkops Valley United Brothers, PE Stars, Highbury and Sibanye.
Group 2, which will play at North End Stadium in East London, has Birmingham City, Tornado, Bush Bucks and Future Tigers.
Group 3, which will be hosted at the WSU Ibika Campus in Butterworth where Matta Milan, Butterworth, Peace Makers, and Amavarara will square off.
Group 4, which will play at Mount Ayliff Stadium, has Yakha United, The Guys, Bizana Pondo Chiefs, and Mthatha Bucks.
Pondo Chiefs, who are coming out of a 3-0 win against Highbury last Saturday, have won all three games they’ve played in the third-tier league, and the club’s general manager, Loyiso “Tsutsu” Jokweni, thinks they’ve got a good chance to dethrone EC Bees.
“Now that Bees are no longer there, we have a good chance of going further in the Nedbank Cup. Because they’ve been owning that tournament for more than two seasons now,” said Jokweni.
The former assistant coach turned administrator said playing in the lucrative cup was a motivation on its own, especially since their first game was against Yakha United formerly known as City Lads.
“It’s a derby, because both teams – Chiefs and Yakha United – are under the Alfred Nzo region.
“It’s going to be interesting because both teams are doing well in the league. Yakha has won two league games so far – and the coaches of both teams know each other very well.
“So we expect a battle royal, and last season we very unlucky when it came to playing against them. But things have changed now. It’s time for us to stand up and be counted as well.
“And we are ready for this game – we haven’t sustained any injuries, so that means the 28-men squad is ready to ensure that we qualify for the next round of the competition.”