Magesi came from a goal down to claim a shocking 2-1 win against Mamelodi Sundowns to be crowned the Carling Knockout champions in their debut season in the Premier Soccer League!
En route to the final, Dikwena tsa Meetse eliminated favourites and in form Orlando Pirates in the Round of 16 after claiming a shock 3-2 win at the Orlando Stadium. They followed it up with identical 1-0 wins over TS Galaxy and Richards Bay respectively.
Masandawana were the flying team in the initial stages; they started with a 5-0 win against Golden Arrows which was followed with a massive 4-0 victory at the FNB Stadium versus Kaizer Chiefs in the quarter-final. The initial stage was a 2-0 win against Marumo Gallants.
Chipezeze's heart broken by Rayners
As anticipated, coach Manqoba Mngqithi left no room for mistakes with his starting XI; he went for his best in a bid to get early goals.
It was the same case with his opposite number Clinton Larsen who fielded his strongest team, hoping to cause another major upset in the competition.
The Premier Soccer League's newbies sat deep and opted to go for counterattacks, a tactic that did not work against Sundowns who possessed the ball well in the first half and attacked with every chance they got.
In early exchanges, Teboho Mokoena was denied twice by Elvis Chipezeze alongside Peter Shalulile.
However, his resolve was finally breached in the 36th minute when Lucas Ribeiro saw Iqraam Rayners unmarked in the danger zone. The South American passed the ball to him and the former Stellenbosch forward curled it past fully stretched Chipezeze to send his team to the break with a deserved lead.
Kakora surprises Williams, but Abrahams steals the show
Magesi ended the first half without a shot on target as opposed to Sundowns who had four attempts on target from the six they played.
However, that changed just three minutes after the restart; Masandawana's defense was caught napping, and a good cross from Edmore Chirambadare was picked up by the unmarked Tshepo Kakora who headed past Bafana Bafana captain Ronwen Williams.
There were close calls for either team in the second half, with both Rayners and Chirambadare coming close for their respective teams. Nevertheless, none managed to capitalise on them.
With less than three minutes remaining, Magesi won a corner. Chirambadare took it, and Samuel Darpoh flicked it to Delano Abrahams who sent their fans to dreamland!
By winning the Carling Knockout, Magesi became the first newly-promoted team in Mzansi's history to achieve the fete.
