Advantage Pirates as Sundowns miss chance to go top after draw with Richards Bay

Mamelodi Sundowns failed to take advantage of Orlando Pirates’ Soweto Derby draw as they also dropped two points in their game against Richards Bay, which ended goalless on Sunday.

Sundowns had watched Chiefs hand them the initiative when they drew 1-1 with Kaizer Chiefs earlier in the day, meaning they would have gone top of the table and still with a game in hand, but saw their opportunity disappear following the stalemate with the Natal Rich Boyz.

It was an unusual game for Sundowns where they struggled to create chances and open up a well-organised Richards Bay that put 10 men behind the ball and it could even have been worse had the home side taken their opportunities.

Sundowns survive Richards Bay onslaught

Sundowns hogged possession but failed to get in areas where they could hurt Richards Bay, who followed the same script used by Stellenbosch FC in their 1-1 draw against the Brazilians on Wednesday.

There were no clear-cut opportunities for Sundowns, who were put on the backfoot quite often on the counter-attack with Miguel Cardoso’s side forced into long-range attempts.

However, in the second half, it was Richards Bay who should have won the game, starting in the 75^th minute, when Sanele Barnes received a great pass and squared to Lundi Mahala whose effort was cleared off brilliantly by Keano Cupido.

Five minutes to time, Richards Bay broke again and this time it seemed like they would score when Thulani Gumede found himself through on goal, shrugged off two Sundowns defenders and passed to a free Barnes, but the striker saw his well-taken shot hit Ronwen Williams.

Draw hands Pirates massive advantage

He got a second bite of the cherry from the rebound but his dinked effort behind Williams sailed over the bar.

However, deep in stoppage time, Sundowns should have won it when they made a rare foray into the Richards Bay box with the ball falling to Peter Shalulile and on the half-turn, the Namibian took a shot which somehow missed the target from close range.

That saw the points shared, a result that leaves Pirates top of the table with 59 points, one ahead of Sundowns, who can now only take a two-point lead if they win their game in hand over Polokwane City on Wednesday.

Cardoso will also be concerned as his team, which had won 10 straight league games, has now drawn back-to-back matches in the PSL.