Orlando Pirates general manager Phil ”Mr Jones” Setshedi, not generally known for his expressive emotions, rocketed out of his seat in the media box as though jet-propelled after Isaac Chansa scored the solitary goal of the Premier League game against Jomo Cosmos at Ellis Park on Saturday night.
And few of the 16 000 present would have disagreed with Setshedi’s assessment that the 64th minute scoring effort that gave the Buccaneers a worthy 1-0 win and regained for them the PSL log lead was ”a goal in a million”.
The lithe Zambian international latched onto the ball on the right midfield and from 30 metres rocketed a shot into the far corner of the net. Not surprisingly, it knocked the stuffing out of the gallant Cosmos, who up to that stage had held their own against their more flamboyant opponents and appeared well on the way to gaining an invaluable point.
Pirates, however, were in dominant control for the final 20 minutes and only a glorious, instinctive save by Cosmos goalkeeper Avril Phali from a Lebohang Mokoena piledriver in the 88th minute prevented the Buccaneers from increasing their lead.
Phumudzo Manhenze missed three scrambled opportunities for Pirates within a minute and Cosmos were so under pressure in the closing stages that most of their players remained pinned on defence, despite the urgent need for an equalising goal.
It was a different story in the first half when Cosmos held their own and Anthony Laffor bamboozled the Pirates defence with sheer artistry in the 40th minute — only for his team-mates to squander the glorious scoring opportunity.
Surprisingly, Cosmos owner-coach Jomo Sono substituted Laffor in the 76th minute when it seemed only a moment of magic from the Liberian international might have salvaged a point for his increasingly more bemused and bewildered team. – Sapa