Lamontville Golden Arrows gained full points with a 2-0 win over Jomo Cosmos in a Castle Premiership game played at King Zwelithini Stadium in Durban on Sunday afternoon. Arrows led 1-0 at the interval.
Also victorious in their games on Sunday were Amazulu and Bloemfontein Celtic.
From the start of the game against Arrows, Cosmos never looked threatening. They were inconsistent against a Lamontville side that were seemingly much better prepared for the game.
Arrows’ opening goal came in the 23rd minute when Richard Henyekane scored off a rebound from Cosmos goalkeeper Walter Khumalo.
Khumalo had dropped a thunderous shot from Kagiso Dikgacoi when Henyekane, the industrious Arrows midfielder, outpaced the Cosmos players before releasing the ball to Vusumusi Dlamini who played back to him.
Cosmos failed to penetrate Arrows’ defence. Bheka Phakathi, who used to play as a midfielder for Orlando Pirates, was solid at the back with the assistance of Sakhile Mhlangu, Siyabonga Sangweni, Joseph Henyekane and Papi Zothwane.
For Cosmos, in the 13th minute of the first half, Valeny Nahayo took a free kick that landed in the six-yard box and saw Sammy Magalefa shoot over the bar.
Towards the end of the first half, Zothwane missed a golden opportunity for Arrows with only Khumalo to beat. Instead of pushing the ball in the back of the net, he shot straight into his hands.
In the 57th minute, Cosmos were reduced to 10 men when referee Abdul Ebrahim sent Morgan Gould for an early shower for abusive language.
Four minutes later, Zothwane produced a 2m-high shot that rocketed into the back of the net to give Abafana Besithende a 2-0 lead.
In the middle of the second half, Arrows introduced Norman Smith, Abia Nale and Alton Meiring for Richard Henyekane, Zothwane and Vusumuzi Vilakazi. Sibusiso Hadebe of Cosmos came in for Sydney Plaatjies.
In the dying minutes of the game, Brendon Wardle saved a well-taken shot from Bongi Macala.
Lone goal for Amazulu
Also in KwaZulu-Natal, Amazulu scored a 1-0 victory over Santos in a tight game played before a capacity crowd at Princess Magogo Stadium.
The only goal of the match came in the 31st minute of the game via Dennis Lota after consistent hard work by John ”Shoes” Moshoe, Xolani Mabaso and Lucky Mzizi, who out-dribbled a number of Santos players.
Santos started the game on a high note, attacking with five strikers, but all their scoring chances were thwarted by Tshepo Motsoeneng, Amazulu’s agile goalkeeper.
Motsoeneng grabbed the ball at Jonathan Armogam’s feet in the eighth minute. He was called on again to save a well-taken shot from Armogam in the 19th minute.
In the 35th minute, Motsoeneng was again in the action when he stopped a thunderous shot from Omar Hendricks. Three minutes later, he saved a high ball from Romano Scott and, lastly, he prevented Eleazar Rodgers from scoring an equaliser.
Amazulu had four scoring chances from which they only managed to convert one. In the 24th minute, Mzizi missed a sitter and a few minutes later he again shot over the bar with only Jason Barnard, the Santos goalkeeper, to beat.
In the 51st minute, Lota fired a shot across the face of the goal, but there was no one there to convert the goal. Kagiso Senamela produced a poor shot inside the box that was easily saved by Barnard.
Celtic move up
Bloemfontein Celtic, with only 10 men, moved into position six on the log when they beat Silver Stars 2-1 in front of a capacity crowd in a cracking Premier Soccer League game played at the Seisa Ramabodu Stadium on Sunday afternoon. The hosts were leading 1-0 at half-time.
Celtic’s coach, Benjamin Reed, standing in for Tony de Nobrega who resigned a fortnight ago, ended a losing steak against Silver Stars that began with their promotion into the league way back in the 2003/04 season.
The initial breakthrough came from Ugandan defender Timothy Batabire when he headed home a corner kick taken by Moses Spandeel in the 24th minute, giving Stars goalkeeper Wayne Sandilands no chance.
Stars strikers Hareoipha Marumo and Michael Khaile had their chances on several occasions to score, but Celtic goalkeeper Postnett Omony was equal to the task and managed to clear their attempts.
In search of an equaliser, Stars coach Owen da Gama made several changes to reinforce his attack and it paid off. He replaced Solomon Mathe with Koketso Mmotong deep into the second half, followed by striker Mpho Malika who replaced Marumo.
It came as no surprise when Stars midfielder December Ngobeni equalised in the 82nd minute from a cross-pass by Dingane Masanobo. The ball slipped in between Omony’s legs before rolling into the empty net.
Earlier, in the 61st minute, referee Lwandile Mfike gave Celtic defender Gary Goldstone a red card for using abusive language towards assistant referee Godfrey Selopetsa.
Lesotho international Peter Mphongoa wasted two clear chances to put Celtic ahead by shooting sky-high with only goalkeeper Sandilands to beat. Reed was forced to make a change in the 79th minute when Mphongoa was injured and replaced by rising-star striker Petros Mahlatsi.
Just when everyone assumed that the two teams would hold on and share the spoils, Celtic’s attacking midfielder Spandeel had other ideas. He scored the winning goal in extra time, with a low shot that gave home supporters something to celebrate as their team achieved a maximum three points.
Celtic moved into sixth place on the log with 42 points and three games remaining, while Silver Stars remained in third spot with 45 points with only two games remaining in the season. — Sapa