Wits reschedule catch-up game against Pirates at Ellis Park

Orlando Pirates have confirmed their Absa Premiership clash with Bidvest Wits which was postponed in September due to “fees must fall” protesters who threatened to disrupt the game, will now be played at the Ellis Park Stadium.

“After threats erupted on the Wits University campus, with students planning to disrupt the match at the Milpark Stadium, which is situated on the campus, the PSL was forced to postpone the fixture in September last year,” read a statement on the club’s official website.

“The Mighty Buccaneers and the Students will now play their catch-up clash on Friday, February 3 at Pirates’ former home ground Ellis Park. Kick-off for this encounter is 8pm.”

After ending the year on a low, going five games without registering a victory, it will be vital for the Buccaneers to start the second round of the campaign on a positive note.

The last time the Buccaneers won a match was back in November when they beat Chippa United 1-0 at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. They then went on to lose to SuperSport United, Bloemfontein Celtic and Maritzburg United, while playing to draws against PSL rookies Baroka FC and Highlands Park.

A stint of poor results saw the club finishing the year in 10th place with 18 points on the league table after playing 13 matches.

Meanwhile, Wits who are joint log leaders with SuperSport United on 25 points after 13 games, had a good start in the first half of the season which saw them clinching the MTN8 trophy early in their campaign. However, the team went on a bit of a slump in the last five games of the year, which saw them pick up only five points out of a possible 15.

Going into the second half of the season, coach Gavin Hunt has his sensational young forward Phakamani Mahlambi (right) back to full fitness and they have bolstered their squad with new signing Granwald Scott who recently returned home following a stint in Slovakia with Slovan Bratislava.

The match between the teams will be the opening fixture of the year for 2016/2017 season played at the historic stadium, where 43 football fans lost their lives during a stampede when Pirates played Kaizer Chiefs in April 2001.

The rest of the fixtures will be played four days later as the race for the Absa Premiership title continues.