Shock defeat for log leaders Kaizer Chiefs
MID-TABLE side Bloemfontein Celtic shocked Kaizer Chiefs with a 3-1 win in their PSL Absa Premiership match at the Tuks Stadium in Pretoria last night.
The teams were level 1-1 at the half-time break.
Following this defeat, Chiefs remain six points clear at the top of the Premiership table, while Celtic moved up to 10th position.
It was only the second time in 25 league outings between the two teams that Celtic had beaten Chiefs.
Amakhosi’s first half territorial advantage counted for nought by the time the teams retreated to the dressing rooms for the half time interval.
Central defender Eric Mathoho gave Chiefs the lead in the 35th minute after he out-jumped the opposition defence to connect with a corner by midfielder Bernard Parker. It was Mathoho’s fifth goal of the season.
It seemed like that would be the only score of the opening half, but Celtic had other ideas. On the stroke of half-time, striker Sera Motebang scored the equaliser, courtesy of an assist play by defender Sifiso Ngobeni.
The teams had hardly settled down to second-half play when Motebang, the Lesotho international striker, scored again and Celtic took the lead for the first time in the match.
For a moment, Celtic’s players anxiously looked at the assistant referee, fearing he might wave the flag to indicate offside but mercifully for Phunya Selesele that did not happen.
Chiefs regrouped and wrested the initiative for a while. They fashioned a few scoring chances, but these were spurned. The best scoring chance fell to playmaker Khama Billiat, who played fairly deep in this game.
As many were waiting for the equaliser from the Soweto giants, Celtic delivered another blow in the 74th minute when Victor Letsoalo scored to give his side a commanding 3-1 lead, and by this time the match suddenly looked beyond the log leaders.
All hopes of Chiefs staging a face-saving fightback evaporated in the chilly Tshwane night air as Celtic continued to apply pressure relentlessly as the game wound to its close.