Moses Mabhida Stadium
Orlando Pirates (1)
Klate 18 pen
Moroka Swallows (1)
Shivambu 84
Pirates win 4-2 on penalties.
A decade-long cup drought that made a mockery of Orlando Pirates’ status as one of South Africa’s top clubs has been ended.
A coach who was teetering on the brink of joining the ranks of the unemployed can now unpack his bags and sit pretty. And the long-suffering fans that were for a long time the bane of jokes can now walk tall.
The Buccaneers’ penalty shoot-out defeat of Swallows here last night was worth more than the R8m cheque they received from sponsors MTN. This was a victory to set things right in local football; a win to remind all and sundry just who the senior citizens of local football are.
Granted, Swallows just did not come to the party, especially in the first half when they played so bad you’d have sworn Pirates had more than the allotted 11 players on the field.
And while it is true that Pirates’ display was worthy of more than just the spot-kicks won after Siyabonga Nomvethe hoofed his shot over and Moeneeb Josephs saved one, a win is a win – especially in cup final matches that can be so unpredictable that they can go either way.
For the uninformed, Pirates are one of local football’s oldest clubs having been formed way back in 1937. They have always been among the frontrunners, from initiating multiracial football in 1978, through to the formation of the NSL in 1985 to the inception of the PSL in 1996.
They are the only Southern African club to be crowned African champions for Pete’s sake, the Buccaneers earning the auspicious honour in 1995.
So, to have them go 10 years without a knockout trophy was just a travesty. And last night they rectified this. Their win over Chiefs last week meant they were favourites for this clash and from the outset it showed they were going to live up to this billing.
You could see they needed the trophy more as they ran at Swallows from the first whistle. Dikgang Mabalane’s pace on the right proved useful in their quest for an early goal and six minutes into the match the winger’s cross found its way onto Thulasizwe Mbuyane’s head. But the ball went over.
Pirates’ pressing earned sweet rewards on 18 minutes when Klate converted a spot-kick given after Aubrey Mathibe had sent Ezenwa Otorugu flying.
Stung by the goal, Swallows surged forward and nearly got the equaliser five minutes later but Moeneeb Josephs acrobatically fisted over a header during a goalmouth melee.
Bouyed on by their lead and the cheering of their fans, the Buccaneers played like men possessed, attacking their adversaries from all angles.
Rudi Krol’s team could so easily have had a huge numerical advantage, such was their ability to be all over the pitch and close down whatever lame attacks Swallows launched in search of their talismanic, yet clearly unfit captain, Nomvethe, whose broken arm was in a cast.
Mbuyane nearly made it 2-0 on 27 minutes, but having twisted and turned two defenders he watched in disbelief as Mathibe denied him with a good save.
The Swallows No1 was again at Swallows’ rescue five minutes before the break, this time denying Klate.
Try as they did to get back into the game after the break, Swallows just could not and it was again Pirates who looked threatening. And then Morgan Shivambu headed in a Gareth Ncaca free-kick to force the game into an extended period of 30 minutes. And there it showed just why Irvin Khoza’s team had gone 10 years without winning a knockout trophy – they just don’t know how to turn play dominance into goals.
Source -iol.co.za
