Mamelodi Sundowns are without a doubt the favourites in Saturday’s Telkom Knockout semifinal clash against Free State Stars at the Absa Stadium in Kimberley.
The defending league champs knocked out Golden Arrows and Thanda Royal Zulu 3-0 and 3-1 respectively en route to the Telkom semis.
The might of Sundowns’ star-studded line-up was in doubt when they were held by Benoni Premier United — now known as Thanda Royal Zulu — and beaten by Arrows in league games. But the Brazilians have bounced back gradually, moving into the top five and pushing Stars down to sixth.
”I don’t see why we can’t repeat our past [good] performances against Stars,” Sundowns coach Gordon Igesund said. ”But I have watched their [Stars’s] games against Ajax and it’s going to be tough against a team that are doing so well in the league and the Telkom Cup.”
Stars, like Ajax Cape Town and Bloemfontein Celtic, have been coasting at the top of the league table while the likes of Sundowns, who won the SAA Supa8 competition earlier this season, have battled to get to the top.
”Obviously we have thought about adding a second trophy to our cabinet but we’ll have to work hard against Stars and can’t think about being in the final already.”
Stars public-relations officers Louis Tshakoane believes his team have to do well in competitions and not only the league to prove that they are Premier Soccer League (PSL) quality.
”It’s a chance for us to prove that we are PSL quality and that we can compete with a team like Sundowns,” Tshakoane said. ”It’s a big test for us and it could not have come in a better form than a cup final.”
Stars have seen off Ajax Cape Town and Jomo Cosmos to reach the semis of South Africa’s richest cup tournament, and Tshakoane says his team are playing for the people of the Free State.
”We went to Cape Town and we won, then we beat Cosmos twice in the space of a week,” he said. ”We are representing the people of Free State and we are taking it very seriously. It does not matter where we play Sundowns as we will guard ourselves and honour our people to win this game.”
The game is scheduled to kick off at 3.30pm. — Sapa