Two minutes of magic shortly after half-time delighted a 22 000-strong crowd at Ellis Park on Wednesday night and kept Orlando Pirates in contention for the Premier Soccer League (PSL) title with a rousing 2-0 win over Dynamos.
It was mesmerising substitute Gift Leremi who paved the way for the Buccaneers’ 2-0 success as his inspired 35m shot thundered into the roof of the net in the 56th minute.
And with Dynamos seemingly still stunned by what was surely one of the most memorable goals of the PSL season, Zambian international Isaac Chansa delivered the coup de grâce a minute later when he scored Pirates’ second goal with a close-range header.
The cacophony of noise that greeted the two-goal burst was of such intensity it probably filtered through to the back streets of Orlando at the opposite end of town.
But with Mamelodi Sundowns simultaneously shading Supersport United 1-0, the Buccaneers remain a point behind the log-leading Brazilians, with the two championship contenders needing to play two games to complete their programme.
And with Sundowns due to play Pirates in the final fixture of the season, the script of intrigue could not have been written better by master thriller writer Agatha Christie.
Pirates, however, laboured through a tense opening half against a gallant, determined Dynamos, who needed a point badly to ease their relegation concerns.
The Buccaneers’ concern was intensified when Benedict Vilakazi was rushed to hospital for X-rays after incurring what appeared a serious ankle injury.
It was a fatalistic, bitter-sweet blow for Pirates, however, with Vilakazi’s 40th-minute injury prompting the arrival on the pitch of the match-winning Leremi — and Pirates could not have asked for a better gift.
Dynamos battled valiantly until the end and had a goal disallowed under controversial circumstances in the 72nd minute when a Pirates defender booted the ball into his own net, but a ruling of off-side was given instead. — Sapa