/ 11 May 2008

‘Golden point’ for Thanda Royal Zulu

It was described by their officials as a point ”worth its weight in gold” after relegation-embattled Thanda Royal Zulu had drawn 1-1 with Santos in Hammarsdale on Sunday afternoon.

And when it comes to splashing out nuggets of gold — or their equivalent in order to achieve soccer stature — the team whose ownership is embedded in Swedish connections is not averse to buying success.

Thanda Royal, it will be recalled, only enjoy Premiership status by virtue of buying the Benoni Premier United franchise, and their latest financial innovation in order to preserve this asset has emerged in the acquisition, for the remainder of the season, of Gordon Igesund — the coach with a Midas Touch — as a technical adviser.

And Igesund, sitting in the stands alongside suspended coach Roger Palmgrem, was as vocal as anyone in the stadium as Ivorian striker Serge Djiehoua scored the all-important 72nd-minute equaliser with a somewhat soft goal that Wayne Roberts should have saved.

Santos, in the process, effectively surrendered the slim chance they had of joining SuperSport United and Ajax Cape Town as Premiership contenders going into the last two rounds of fixtures.

The Cape Town club had gained an early ascendancy through a penalty from Eleazer Rodgers following a reckless tackle in only the fifth minute.

But Santos gradually lost their momentum and finally appeared quite happy with a draw as Thanda Royal sensed the prospect of a victory in the closing stages when they appealed in vain for a penalty of their own.

Nevertheless, the KwaZulu-Natal club are now two points better off than Black Leopards, and with an advantage of three points over bottom-of-the-log Jomo Cosmos, the point that was ”worth its weight in gold” could well prove just that in the final reckoning. — Sapa