Dvukamanja puts Wits back in the hunt for PSL title
● While Kaizer Chiefs might have ended their slim chance of challenging the pacesetters for the league title with their 1-1 draw against SuperSport United in Mbombela Stadium on Friday, Bidvest Wits have every right to feel they are back in it.
A week ago Chiefs striker Bernard Parker rubbished his teammate Ramahlwe Mphahlele’s claim that they are out of the title race, but after Friday’s result Parker might just as well agree with his club’s rightback.
Needing victory against a SuperSport side which still has a slight chance for the same title, Chiefs could only share the spoils with a Khama Billiat scorcher saving them from what could have been a worse result after Matsatsantsa had taken the lead through Mxolisi Macuphu in the second minute.
With six matches to go, Chiefs are rooted in seventh spot and seven points off the leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, who still have a match in hand. SuperSport are fifth and four points behind their neighbours.
In contrast, Gavin Hunt will feel that his team, which had given away 10 points in their four-match winless streak before their last-gasp 4-2 away win to Bloemfontein Celtic, now have a chance of challenging Sundowns till the end.
Thanks to Terrence Dvukamanja’s brace in the last two minutes of the game in the Free State on Friday, Wits are now second, two points behind Sundowns.
What will worry Hunt though is the alarming rate with which his team has conceded goals in their last five matches — the two against Celtic bringing them to 10 against eight they had scored.
Even against an inconsistent Celtic, Hunt’s teams struggled to be in control of the match as they had to recover from a thirdminute goal by Celtic’s Tebogo Potsane before Gabadinho Mhango equalised in the 58th minute and Gift Motupa gave them the lead in the 70th minute, but only to allow Tshegofatso Mabaso to equalise four minutes from time..
Dvukamanja’s brace came in the nick of time for Hunt’s team, which now has to avoid defeat against other title contenders Orlando Pirates in their next game at home on April 6.
The Wits-Pirates result could go a long way in determining who has the best stamina to challenge Pitso Mosimane’s side, which has all the credentials of defending their title with all teams pursuing them struggling with consistency.