As a schoolmaster lecturing benevolently to wayward students on how to behave in the classroom, Victor Hlungwane would probably receive full marks. As a soccer referee who is supposed to give decisions in accordance with the rules of the game, his performance during the goalless draw between Moroka Swallows and SuperSport United on Sunday deserved no more than a fail mark.
A rabbit’s foot has long been deemed to be a lucky charm. But faced by the ominous threat of relegation before their final Premier Soccer League game of the season against Golden Arrows at Durban’s King Zwelithini Stadium on Saturday afternoon, Benoni Premier United were not taking any chances.
Bafana Bafana head coach Carlos Parreira was released from hospital on Saturday after the internationally respected official was admitted to a Johannesburg clinic on Thursday — barely hours after announcing a second-string South African squad to play Cosafa Cup games in Swaziland.
It might seem like a haul up the slopes of Mount Everest before reclaiming a prized position in the elite World Group of the Davis Cup, but South Africa have started their ascent in style by winning all five matches in the Euro-Africa Group III play-off in Tunisia by a 3-0 margin.
Benni McCarthy could be to Bafana Bafana what Didier Drogba is to Côte d’Ivoire or what Michael Essien is to Ghana if he puts his mind to it — but once he makes himself available to play for South Africa again, he won’t be granted any special privileges, says Bafana and former Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira.
Oozing optimism and bonhomie at the start of the season, Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates and Jomo Cosmos were all confident of winning the Premier Soccer League crown. Now, with the tail end of the season fast approaching, the three ambitious clubs are battling for their lives.
It was all but a one-horse race — a thoroughbred against a carthorse — as Premier League champions Mamelodi Sundowns went on a victory gallop at Ellis Park on Wednesday night and gave Orlando Pirates a football lesson during their sparkling 2-1 victory.
Mamelodi Sundowns saved themselves from beetroot-red blushes while coming back from a second minute deficit to beat Tunisian club Sportif de Gafsa 2-1 in a fourth round CAF first-leg Confederation Cup match at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Saturday afternoon.
While Kaizer Chiefs’ downward spiral has ironically gained momentum since the firing of Ernst Middendorp, the German-born coach is being described as a saviour by Armenia Bielefeld after guiding the Bundesliga club out of a serious relegation hole.
Memories will be rekindled of the first final after Absa took over the sponsorship of South Africa’s premier knockout competition when Santos and Ajax Cape Town meet in what is perenially a fiercely contested derby at Athlone Stadium on Sunday afternoon.