There was little to enthuse over as title-chasing Mamelodi Sundowns dropped two valuable Absa Premiership points at their home ground, the Super Stadium in Atteridgeville, on Wednesday night when they were held to a 0-0 draw by a gutsy Free State Stars.
The point sees Downs move to 35 points — five behind leaders SuperSport United, who suffered a setback when they were beaten 2-1 by AmaZulu in Durban in a match that was also played on Wednesday night.
Sundowns held a territorial advantage in the first half and had their visitors under a lot of pressure. But poor finishing and some wild shooting in the final third of the pitch prevented Downs getting on the score sheet during this period.
Stars rarely tested Downs goalkeeper Calvin Marlin during the entire 90 minutes.
Downs controlled the midfield and Matthew Booth, making his debut for the Brazilians at centre-half, controlled the defence. Booth kept Stars’ danger man Sthembiso Ngcobo quiet by marking the Stars leading goal scorer tightly and giving him little room to move in.
Booth shone in his first match since rejoining Downs in January after spending the last six years playing in Russia.
In other matches played on Wednesday, Santos had to work hard in the energy-sapping Rustenburg heat for a deserved three points, beating Moroka Swallows 1-0, while Ajax Cape Town put their shyness in front of goal in the past with an emphatic 4-1 win over Bay United at the Athlone Stadium. — Sapa