Tshwane bragging rights up for grabs
MIHLALI BALEKA mihlali.baleka@inl.co.za
THE City of Tshwane will be divided into allegiances this evening as there’ll only be one of their PSL teams that will keep alive their chances of playing in the Caf Confederation Cup next season.
There’s been a resounding dominance that has hovered over the nation’s capital in the first half of the season, where two of their élite premier division clubs, Mamelodi Sundowns and Supersport United, shared the success in domestic cup competitions.
The Brazilians were crowned the Telkom Knockout winners after defeating Maritzburg United 2-1 in the final in December, while Matsantsantsa a Pitori had earlier in the season defeated Highlands Park 1-0 in the final to win the MTN8 competition in October.
One of the Tshwane giants will stand a good chance of clinching the third and last cup competition of the season, the Nedbank Cup. But that will come at the expense of the other as the two teams will square off in South Africa’s premier club knockout competition tonight (8:15pm kick-off) at the Lucas Moripe Stadium.
Sundowns host sworn enemies Supersport in Atteridgeville with a spot in the last 16 up for grabs – taking a gigantic step into sealing qualification for next season’s Pan-african competition.
Following four meetings this season – where Sundowns won two contests, Supersport one with the other a 1-1 draw – there’s plenty at stake, especially considering that both sides have a chance to grab Tshwane’s last bragging rights this term.
The Brazilians, though, have the upper hand especially after winning their last outing, in the league, 2-1, while their ongoing participation in the African safari in the last five years has made them a confidence force to be reckoned with.
Moreover, they made their path to the knockout stage of the Champions League look easy this season as they finished the round robin group stage unbeaten after they pulled off four wins and two draws in six matches.
However, as the old mantra goes, “there’s no formula book in the knockout stage’’, Sundowns will be wary of their quarter-finals opponents Al-ahly, who’ll be out to avenge their 5-1 demolition in the same stage of the competition last season.
But should the Pharaohs see their revenge plan through, the Brazilians will have to have put all their eggs in one basket by aiming for a top-two finish in the Absa Premiership, and that won’t be easy.
Log leaders Kaizer Chiefs are hellbent on holding on to the No1 spot for the rest of the season. Amakhosi have already amassed 45 points, 10 ahead of the third-placed champions, Sundowns.
Sure, the Brazilians will push the Glamour to the limit for a second spot finish but should things go south, they’ll be looking at the Nedbank Cup – if they beat Supersport and progress in the tournament – as their ticket back to the African safari.
But if Supersport’s impressive record in the Nedbank Cup is anything to go by, then do not expect Kaitano Tembo’s men to go down without a fight. After all, they are the only team to win the competition back-toback, in the 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 seasons.
Supersport are looking at the Nedbank Cup with glee, especially with their league campaign now on shaky ground as as they are 11 points behind Chiefs, who have two games in hand.