Rockets make Pirates pay
TS GALAXY (1) 1
Hlongwane 33
ORLANDO PIRATES 0
ORLANDO Pirates’ CAF Champions League aspirations suffered a huge blow after Lifa Hlongwane’s lone strike ensured that TS Galaxy beat them at Mbombela Stadium yesterday.
The Bucs are fourth on the log with 40 points, five behind second-placed Royal AM, who have a game in hand and are scheduled to play a league encounter against AmaZulu tomorrow. Meanwhile, the win for Galaxy meant that they moved out of the relegation zone into 13th spot.
Pirates will now turn their focus to the CAF Confederation Cup semi-final, where they’ll play Al Ahli Tripoli in Libya in the first leg on Sunday. If they get a win there, they’ll have one foot in their first continental final since 2015.
This game had all the makings of a six-pointer, given that Pirates are chasing a top two finish, while Galaxy are fighting for their lives as they are embroiled in a dogfight at the foot of the Premiership table.
And it was Pirates who had the brightest start.
They were patient in their build-up play, with midfield duo Goodman Mosele and Linda Mntambo trying their utmost to cut the Rockets’ defence open.
Pirates’ first real threat chance came from Thembinkosi Lorch’s ambitious attempt from the centre-line after he tried to lob keeper Melusi Buthelezi, who was off his line, the dipping effort going over the crossbar.
Terrence Dzvukamanja had a clearer chance to put Pirates in the lead early on after a goalmouth scramble, but the Zimbabwean poked his effort over the crossbar.
The tempo of the game decreased midway through the first half, although Pirates still remained dangerous. Innocent Maela’s header hit the crossbar, before Happy Jele placed a glancing header wide from a corner.
Pirates’ wastefulness would come back to haunt them.
Lindokuhle Mbatha beat Jele neatly with pace and skill on the edge of the box, forcing keeper Richard Ofori to commit, the veteran attacker teeing-up Hlongwane nicely, who slotted into an empty net.
Galaxy escaped a scare close to half-time after Buthulezi required medical attention for a recurring niggle that seemed to cause some pain and discomfort thoughout the match. The Rockets’ No 1, however, managed to continue on after the injury break.
The Sea Robbers made two substitutions at half-time as Kwame Peprah and Fortune Makaringe came on for Mntambo and Jele but this time it was Galaxy that started on a high.
A well-weighted pass from their midfield found an open Orebotse Mongae up-front, but the Galaxy attacker hit the ball against an on-rushing Ofori, who parried the effort back to play.
With the clock winding down, Pirates found their feet again, with Peprah making the difference.
Lorch, however, missed a tap-in after he reacted late to Peprah’s hard and low shot across the face of goal. Moments later, he missed the target from distance.
Pirates huffed and they puffed, with Makaringe also forcing a brilliant save out of Buthelezi from close range after being unleashed by Peprah.
In the end, Hlongwane’s goal was enough to see the Rockets claim all three points as they continue their fight for survival, while Pirates’ ambitions to play Champions League next season continued to fade away.