Weather plays ball ahead of cup-ties
PSL TO DECIDE ON LEOPARDS’ CLASH WITH WITS
The Nedbank Cup last16 should finally see its first completed matches today, with the weather in the Mother City set fair for games involving Cape Umoya United and Cape Town City.
A deluge in Thohoyandou on Wednesday saw the round’s opening match abandoned, with the Premier Soccer League meeting yesterday afternoon to continue to try and make a decision on when the rematch between Black Leopards and Wits will take place.
Umoya are involved in an all-National First Division clash with Mbombela United this afternoon at Athlone Stadium, with the Cape side – formerly known as Platinum Stars – slight underdogs, sitting as they are, 11 points behind Mbombela in the NFD. Cape Umoya United only scraped past South African fourth-division side TUT in the last round, veteran striker Nathan Paulse, brought out of retirement to play for Umoya this season, netting the winner.
Mbombela United also won a home game 2-1 against an amateur side, NC Professionals, in the last-32.
The evening sees the higher profile Nedbank Cup game in the Cape today, as Cape Town City host Highlands Park in an all-Absa Premiership affair.
Highlands beat City 2-0 at the Makhulong Stadium in Tembisa on December 1, with Peter Shalulile and Tendai Ndoro on the scoresheet, but Benni McCarthy’s side are in good form and have to be favourites on their own turf at Cape Town Stadium.
“It was a tough trip for us ... but Friday is a different day. We are a much more established team now than when we played them the last time around,” McCarthy told reporters this week.
City are coming off the back of a defeat to AmaZulu, however, while Owen Da Gama’s Highlands Park will be on a high having beaten league leaders Bidvest Wits in their last outing. The Lions of the North are having a decent first season in the top flight, though they have only managed one away win all season, at Bloemfontein Celtic on December 17.