WeeklySA_Admin
NEDBANK LAST 8: CHANCE FOR PIRATES TO DEFEND TROPHY AND CHIEFS TO BAG SOME SILVEWARE
By Ali Mphaki
Its a Super Saturday what with three blockbuster fixtures featuring South Africa’s creme de la creme in Orlando Pirates, Mamelodi Sundowns, and Kaizer Chiefs all vying to secure their spot in the last four of the lucrative UK FA-Cup inspired local Nedbank Cup.
Kick-starting the action is defending champions Orlando Pirates who are away to SuperSport United at the Old Peter Mokaba stadium in Polokwane.
Match is pencilled for 3pm.
To say uneasy lies the head of Pirates coach Jose Riveiro ahead of this crunch encounter is to put it mildly, considering that he faces a tricky and highly unpredictable SuperSport United ensemble who have a home advantage in this instance.
Added to Riveiro’s headache is the fact that SuperSport has been a somewhat bogey team for Pirates, with that rare knack of tormenting Amabhakaniya and cut them down to size when least expected.
An air of nervous energy usually grips the Buccaneers when facing SuperSport United, the memories of the 6-1 drubbing they inflicted on Pirates in Mbombela on November 1, 2016, a record defeat in the club’s history that saw then coach Muhsin Ertugral resign on spot, still a sore wound. Pirates’ legion of supporters may have learnt that history has a tendency to repeat itself, which makes for a cracker of a game between the two antagonists.
Match is pencilled for 3pm.
Not spared from Dracula-like nightmares is Kaizer Chiefs coach Nasreddin Nabi whose lukewarm team are away to hard-running Stellenbosch FC at the Nelson Mandela Bay stadium in Gqebhera, the match coming up following the Pirates match at 6pm.
Never mind that in their last encounter Chiefs won 2-nil away in a league game, both teams come to this Nedbank game with their tails up having won their Tuesday games by beating Magesi and Marumo Gallants 1-nil respectively.
And typical of cup games, fans can expect a humdinger of a match.
Rounding up Super Saturday is Mamelodi Sundowns who are hosts to Sekhukhune United at the Lucas Moripe stadium at 8pm. The perennial league champions who are also participants in the forthcoming Fifa Club World Cup in the US from June 14 have been on devastating form obliterating anything on its way.
When last the two met on February 27 it was goals galore at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium after a convincing 4-2 victory from Mamelodi Sundowns against Sekhukhune United in a six-goal performance on the night.
It may be that the rotation of the ball by the Brazilians is exceptional but Babina Noko will hope to catch them on the break which makes for an intrigue of an encounter. The fourth and last match of the Nedbank last 8 will be on Sunday featuring minnows Durban City from the SAFA Second Division against Marumo Gallants.
The Nedbank Cup is held in a single-elimination knockout format, meaning one team must emerge victorious in each game. Therefore, if the match ends in a draw during the regular 90-minute game time, both teams will move to play in added extra time (AET) and, if necessary, penalties.
1st place team wins a whopping R7,000,000 and qualifies for next season’s CAF Confederation Cup.
2nd place earn a total of R2,500,000.
The cash prize for teams in 3rd and 4th place is R1,000,000.
5th, 6th and 7th place will be awarded with R400,000, each.
