Stars to battle Buccaneers in Mbombela
Missed opportunities led to Chiefs’ failure
PLATINUM Stars will play Orlando Pirates in the final of the Telkom Knockout at the Mbombela Stadium on December 7.
It will be a repeat of the MTN8 final played in Durban and while Amakhosi would have relished the chance to face off against their arch rivals in a contest for silverware, Pirates have a score to settle against Dikwena.
In Durban two months ago, Stars ended their seven-year trophy drought by defeating the Buccaneers on penalties. And they now have a chance to win a second title in one season. But they will have to be a bit more clinical than last night.
Dikwena emerged victors as defender Thabiso Semenya stunned the stadium into silence with the solitary strike of the game, in the 52nd minute.
Stars’ second cup final in two months only proves that Allan Freese’s appointment as head coach was not a mistake. Freese replaced Cavin Johnson at the start of this campaign and the sceptics expected Stars to struggle.
Having beaten Stars in a Premier Soccer League match in September, Chiefs seemed to approach this game as if they had suffered from amnesia.
A look into his “How to beat Plat- inum Stars” notebook might have come in handy for Chiefs coach Stuart Baxter, who remained frantic throughout the 90 minutes as his side failed to convert chances.
Despite the goal, which Semenya scored with a tap-in following a corner kick from Tintswalo Tshabalala, Chiefs were the better side in a game where referee Victor Gomes got more attention than the man in the middle should.
The Glamour Boys could have gone ahead in the 13th minute had Keegan Ritchie been more alert and picked out his teammate Bernard Parker in the box. But the left back chose to go for goal, forcing a save from goalkeeper Siyabonga Mpontshane, with the rebound from Parker on target, but not enough to trouble the keeper.
Ritchie also showed some rustiness, having only made the line-up because of an injury to Tsepo Masilela.
Parker would later hit the crossbar with a well-taken free kick. Had it gone in, Chiefs would have gained more control and eased past Stars at that stage.
Stars’ second cup final in just two months only proves that the appointment of Allan Freese as head coach was not a mistake
However, Amakhosi continued to fluff their opportunities in front of goal and collecting yellow cards as they became desperate.
Parker, George Lebese and Lehlohonolo Majoro, the three men leading the Chiefs’ attack, should shoulder a lot of responsibility for this defeat.
Baxter brought on Knowledge Musona for Majoro late in the second half to try and get Chiefs back on level terms, but the Zimbabwean picked up a yellow card, for simulation in the Stars penalty box.
Dikwena, even without their captain Vuyo Mere, who is injured and now hoping to recover in time for the final next month, frustrated Chiefs by simply keeping calm and trying to catch them on the counter-attack.
Amakhosi’s league and cup double heroics are quickly being forgotten.
The impressive moves and quality individual players are still there, but the scoring boots and the hunger seems to be lacking.
It’s the complete opposite for Dikwena, who finished runners-up behind Chiefs in the Premiership last season.
Last night, their performance was not one for the history books by any stretch of the imagination, but they did enough and are becoming cup experts. Pirates should be worried as this Stars team can grind out results both home and away. In the Premiership this season, they have only lost to Chiefs and Moroka Swallows, the two teams vying for the league title.
Stars should not be discounted for that piece of silverware either.