Kaizer Chiefs dent Orlando Pirates’ title hopes as Soweto Derby ends in stalemate

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Kaizer Chiefs dent Orlando Pirates’ title hopes as Soweto Derby ends in stalemate
Relebohile Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates and Aden McCarthy of Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto Derby. Photo -Kaizer Chiefs

Kaizer Chiefs did Mamelodi Sundowns a great favour as far as the PSL title race is concerned when they held Orlando Pirates to a 1-1 draw in the 182nd Soweto Derby at a sold-out FNB Stadium on Sunday.

Pirates had to come from a goal down for a share of the spoils but fans had to wait until after 60 minutes before the goals arrived with Pule Mmodi breaking the deadlock after 62 minutes before Kamogelo Sebelebele levelled matters 12 minutes later.

Pirates dominated the first half but could not find a way past the impressive Brandon Petersen in the Chiefs goal.

Tshepang Moremi of Orlando Pirates vies for the ball with Pule Mmodi of Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto Derby.
Tshepang Moremi of Orlando Pirates vies for the ball with Pule Mmodi of Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto Derby. Photo – Kaizer Chiefs

The first real chance for the Buccaneers came in the 16th minute when Tshepang Moremi stole the ball from Given Msimango and crossed to Yanela Mbuthuma, but Petersen was quick to snuff out the danger.

Pirates attacks fail to breach Petersen

Three minutes later, Pirates thought they had scored the opening goal when Oswin Appollis got into space and blasted into the net but the goal was ruled out for offside.

Pirates maintained their onslaught and in the 22nd minute, Petersen came up with an incredible block to deny what looked like a certain goal before Msimango cleared out the rebound.

Brandon Petersen of Kaizer Chiefs and Tshepang Moremi of Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto Derby.
Brandon Petersen of Kaizer Chiefs and Tshepang Moremi of Kaizer Chiefs in the Soweto Derby. Photo – Kaizer Chiefs

Moremi would suffer an early setback when he went down injured and received treatment on the pitch before being stretchered off. However, he returned and continued but lasted a little over five minutes before he went down again and this time, he was replaced by Patrick Maswanganyi after what appeared to be an ankle injury.

Four minutes to the break, Pirates should have scored when Sibongiseni Mthethwa lost possession in midfield and Relebohile Mofokeng teed up Kamogelo Sebelebele and the ex-TSG Galaxy star fired at Petersen.  

How did Kaizer Chiefs find the target?

By the end of the first half, the scores read 0-0 but Pirates were unlucky not to have found the breakthrough, having had five attempts, four on target, with Chiefs not getting any at the Bucs’ goal.

Sibongiseni Mthethwa of Kaizer Chiefs takes the ball away from Relebohile Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates in the Soweto Derby.
Sibongiseni Mthethwa of Kaizer Chiefs takes the ball away from Relebohile Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates in the Soweto Derby. Image – Kaizer Chiefs

At the start of the second half, Pirates coach Abdeslam Ouaddou brought in Masindi Nemtajela for Makhehlene Makhaula while Chiefs took off the ineffective Mthethwa for Mduduzi Shabalala.

The changes benefited Chiefs as they started making inroads into the Pirates territory while stretching the Buccaneers’ high defensive line.

Just past the hour mark, the breakthrough arrived. Chiefs broke when Wandile Duba got the ball on the left wing and sprinted towards goal, getting into the box, but opting against shooting before passing to an unmarked Pule Mmodi, who slotted into an empty net with Sipho Chaine already committed.

Pirates share Soweto Derby spoils

Ouaddou reacted by taking off Mbuthuma for Evidence Makgopa and 12 minutes after going down, Pirates drew level.

The home side won the ball in midfield before Appollis found Deon Hotto with a great diagonal pass and the left-back fired a low shot which Petersen punched out but it fell kindly to an unmarked Sebelebele at the near post and he swept home for 1-1 to set up a grandstand finish.

Not long, Appollis would force Petersen o dive low and keep out a goal-bound shot as the Chiefs goalkeeper kept the scores at 1-1 with 11 minutes to go.

However, no more goals later meant shared spoils which leaves Pirates now on 59 points, two ahead of Mamelodi Sundowns, who have two games in hand.

It means if Sundowns win both games in hand, they can take a four-point lead over Pirates with four games remaining while Chefs firmed up third place as they have 47 points, five more than fourth-place AmaZulu, who have played a game more.

<!-- Author Start -->Joel Oliver<!-- Author End -->

Joel Oliver

Author

Joel Oliver is a seasoned multimedia sports journalist with a rich background in covering diverse football stories and events in South Africa and beyond.
His extensive coverage spans subjects touching on the PSL, with a focus on the Big Three (Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs & Mamelodi Sundowns), Bafana Bafana and Banyana Banyana.

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