Buccaneers and Stars share spoils
But substitute Zwane hands Sundowns win against Celtic
PLATINUM Stars coach Cavin Johnson and his Orlando Pirates counterpart Augusto Palacios will lament the fact that their 0-0 draw was two points dropped, rather than the one gained. Pirates went into the match in 10th position on the log – and last night’s proceedings ended with them trailing log-leaders SuperSport United by a whopping nine points and facing a mountain to climb to refresh their Premier League title aspirations.
Stars moved one place to 12th, largely because Mamelodi Sundowns beat Bloemfontein Celtic 1-0 in one of yesterday’s four matches in Mangaung.
But Johnson would have preferred maximum points to close the gap with 11th-placed Ajax Cape Town.
It does not get any better for Pirates as they have a daunting trip to traditional rivals Sundowns in Pretoria on Saturday afternoon, where failure to get maximum points will pile more pressure on Palacios.
Stars have time to correct their mistakes as their next match is on Wednesday away to bottom-of-the-log Baroka FC and they will fancy their chances of getting maximum points.
Pirates and Platinum Stars enjoyed a fair share of possession where they played attacking football but created few goalmouth opportunities.
An early opportunity fell to Pirates captain Oupa Manyisa, whose shot from outside the box was saved by Stars goalkeeper Mbongeni Mzimela.
For Stars, an opportunity went begging when striker Bonginkosi Ntuli lacked support after being in possession in the danger area but was outnumbered by the Pirates defenders.
Ntuli was again a thorn in the Pirates defence a few minutes later, but could not cause damage as he was thwarted by Pirates defender Happy Jele inside the box in the 25th minute.
Stars attacked Pirates again, but captain Vuyo Mere could only watch in disappointment as his wayward shot sailed over the crossbar.
Pirates launched a quick attack of their own after the Stars scare, with striker Tendai Ndoro feeding midfielder Mpho Makola, whose tame effort was dealt with by Mzimela. Five minutes after the restart, Robert Ng’ambi forced an acrobatic save from Pirates keeper Brighton Mhlongo with a close-range shot as the score remained goalless.
Pirates could have taken the lead in the 67th minute but Thabo Matlaba could only managed the side netting.
Meanwhile, Sundowns won for a ninth time in their last 12 trips to Bloemfontein Celtic’s fortress in Manguang.
Themba Zwane finished with composure and confidence 12 minutes from time to take the champions into the top five in the Premier Soccer League standings with the only goal of the game at the Petrus Molemela Stadium.
He had come on as a substitute for Sibusiso Vilakazi and was vital in keeping the lead intact.
After scoring, Zwane provided a goal-line clearance after Wayne Sandilands botched a punch-out from a corner and instead parried the ball towards his own goal, but Zwane hooked it clear. Other results: SuperSport United 5 Golden Arrows 2, Polokwane City 1 Maritzburg United 1.