Orlando Pirates will seek to make MTN8 history when they search for a third straight title during Saturday’s final against Stellenbosch FC at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
Pirates have become the kings of the cups in the last two years under Spanish coach Jose Riveiro as they have claimed the MTN8 and Nedbank Cup in each of the last two seasons and are in with a chance for the first trophy of the season.
No team has ever won the MTN8 in three straight years but Pirates have a chance to make history if they can get one over Steve Barker’s men in Durban.
Riveiro’s side are the form team in South Africa as they are unbeaten in 10 matches, having won eight while drawing two games, in the MTN8, CAF Champions League and PSL.
Pirates, who had put together three straight league wins, have been finding a way to win when the opponent is tough or when not playing well, and will be put to a major test by Stellenbosch, who are known to be hard to beat.
Head-to-head
Stellenbosch have proved a hard nut to crack for Pirates in their recent matchups with their three meetings last season ending with two victories for Stellies and one for the Sea Robbers.
The two sides met twice in September last year when Pirates won the first match 2-1 before Barker’s side secured a 1-0 win and the third game in December ended in a 3-2 victory for Stellenbosch.
It points to a tough match in the offing for Pirates given how Stellenbosch have started this season. Barker’s side have equally been impressive in cup games, having eliminated Mamelodi Sundowns from the MTN8 in the semi-final before sealing a place in the CAF Confederation Cup group stages.
Form guide
Stellenbosch’s only blip was the surprise 2-0 loss to Golden Arrows in their PSL opener, that coming after they had eliminated Sundowns with back-to-back 1-0 wins, while they thrashed Nsingizingi Hotspurs of eSwatini 8-0 on aggregate in the Confederation Cup preliminary round before casting aside DR Congo’s AS Vita with a 3-1 aggregate victory in the following round.
In the PSL, however, they have posted just one win, the 3-0 thrashing of Cape Town City, before last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Polokwane City.
Pirates, meanwhile, have won three straight league matches against Chippa United, Polokwane and Richards Bay, scoring six goals while conceding just one, showing how tight they are in defence.
Their win against Richards Bay also proved that they can produce something special even when the opponent is stubborn and they will need much more than Kabelo Dlamini’s brilliant freekick to stop Stellenbosch given a trophy is at stake.
What have they said?
Riveiro has admitted his team faces an uphill task given their recent struggles against the Stellies.
“We respect them big time. We faced Stellenbosch four times last season – in the MTN8 semi-finals and our two games in the league. We beat them once. It takes 94 minutes in Athlone [Stadium] to beat them against the same players,” said Riveiro.
“We didn’t get a result in any of the other games, so we know very well what it means to play Stellenbosch. And we have to accept it.
“It’s gonna be a game where we are going to be permanently under threat because there’s gonna be transitions, it doesn’t matter how good and how well we prepare ourselves for that situation, we know it’s coming.
“We know [Sanele] Barns, we know [Devin] Titus, we know the young [Bradley] Mojela, we know Jayden [Adams]. We know the capacity they have to play quick forward. We know how aggressive they are. In the counter press, it is the top team in the league – in the PSL tournaments,” he added.
“How aggressive they are. Mojela is the striker. He’s the top in the lack of fouls committed with [Ismail] Toure. It tells you quite a lot about the level of aggression they have the moment that they lose the ball. And how aggressive they are going forward the moment they steal the ball.”
Team news
There are still doubts over the availability of Orlando Pirates duo Olisa Ndah and Monnapule Saleng who missed last weekend’s 1-0 win over Richards Bay with injuries.
The two picked up injuries in Pirates’ 3-0 victory against Polokwane City and they are in a race against time to be fit for Saturday’s cup final.
Meanwhile, Stellenbosch will welcome back goalkeeper Sage Stephens who missed the draw with Polokwane due to a risk of picking up another card that would have seen him suspended for the final.
Time and where to watch
The match will kick off at 18.00 at a sold-out Moses Mabhida Stadium and will be live on SuperSport (Channel 202) and SABC 1.
Predicted lineups
Pirates predicted XI: Pirates predicted XI: Chaine, Maela, Sesane, Monyane, Hotto, Mbatha, Makhaula, Mofokeng, Gilberto, Maswanganyi, Mabasa
Stellenbosch predicted XI: Stephens, Toure, Mcaba, Moloisane, Basadien, Adams, Nduli, Titus, Barns, Cupido, De Jong
