Golden Arrows beat Orlando Pirates 2-1 in a Premier Soccer League (PSL) clash at the Princess Magogo Stadium in Durban on Saturday. There was no score at half-time.
Pirates defender Destin Makita scored in the 53rd minute, but six minutes later Norman Smith brushed him aside to level the score. Arrows captain Kagiso Dikgacoi netted seven minutes from time to secure victory for his team.
Arrows were all over Pirates from the first whistle and gave the visitors little room to move forward. The hosts, though, were wasteful going forward and hardly tested goalkeeper Francis Chansa.
Manuel ”Tico-Tico” Bucuane was closely watched and hardly got a sniff at goal. His striker partner Paulos Masehe did all the grafting, but dropped too deep to have an impact.
Masehe did provide Bucuane with a scoring opportunity in the 20th minute, but the Mozambique international reacted too slowly and the chance was wasted. Lebohang ”Cheesy” Mokoena replaced Bucuane after 30 minutes and added some more momentum for the Bucs.
The two sides went in to the break tied at 0-0. Pirates came out with more verve in the second stanza and pinned Arrows back in the first few minutes. However, a breakthrough seemed far off as Brendan Wardle stood strong in the poles for the hosts.
A corner kick by Bennet Chenene resulted in the opening goal. With Wardle off his line, the ball was headed goalwards but an Arrows defender on the line kicked the ball against his goalkeeper. The loose ball fell to Makita, who got his foot to it first and opened the scoring.
Six minutes later, though, Makita was beaten in the big box by Smith. The striker latched on to a superb pass from Joseph Musonda and held the Congo defender off before turning and blasting the goal past a helpless Chansa.
The tempo of the game increased as both went in search of a winner and play went back and forth. With time running out, Arrows threw everything forward. Musonda again provided the route to goal with an in-swinging corner kick. His captain rose before the Bucs defenders to head home and give his team a memorable victory against the Soweto giants.
Second win for Amazulu
Amazulu registered their second win of the PSL season when they beat Black Leopards 2-1 in scorching heat at Giyani Stadium, Thohoyandou. Leopards led 1-0 at half-time.
Leopards started the game with much aggression and completely dominated the first half, but the second half belonged solely to the visitors.
Leopards took the lead in the third minute via a fit-again striker Myron Shongwe, who was quick to pounce when the ball rebounded from an Amazulu defender to put it away past goalkeeper Mashudu Mamphipa.
Rather than attacking for the equaliser, Amazulu then sat back and absorbed the pressure for the remainder of the half. They regrouped well after the break and equalised seven minutes into the half. Midfielder Dumisane Mgwenya scored after an Amazulu free kick was deflected from a Leopards defender and he was first to react.
The boys from KwaZulu-Natal never gave up and went after the winner, which came in the 69th minute through striker Mpho Maleka.
Leopards have now suffered their second PSL defeat in the space of three days after losing 2-0 to Free State Stars in midweek. — Sapa