It was a day of mixed fortunes for South African giants Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs in the first leg of preliminary rounds of CAF competitions on Saturday. The Buccaneers who are campaigning in the Champions League, thrashed Llioli FC of Lesotho 3-0 in Bloemfontein.
It may have been Llioli’s home game but it was played in the Free State, something that gave Pirates a massive advantage. Chiefs have a lot of work to do in the second leg after they were defeated 1-0 by Kaburscorp FC in Luanda, Angola. The return matches will be played next weekend at Orlando and FNB stadiums, respectively.
In Bloemfontein, Tshegofatso Mabasa grabbed a second half brace while Oswin Appollis contributed the third goal for Bucs against their tricky opponents. The unfancied chaps from the Mountain Kingdom worked hard throughout the 90 minutes and they made Pirates to sweat for their victory. In fact, the scoreline was flattering for the Buccaneers who will start planning for the next round.
But Llioli coach Bongani Maseko has warned Pirates that the fight is not over and that it was still the first half. After the match, he said that they will continue to fight to reverse the scoreline in the second leg in Soweto. To be honest, he is very much aware that Pirates have given themselves a very comfortable lead and Bucs will also be buoyed by the fact that not many teams come out of their slaughterhouse at Orlando alive.
Angolans dim glamour of Chiefs
In Angola, Chiefs made life difficult for themselves and will have to improve in the second leg. A 1-0 deficit is not a mountain to climb, and they are more than capable of turning the tables around at home. Chiefs were the better side in the opening stanza and they created more and better chances than their opponents. Glody Lilepo and Pule Mmodi had sniffs at goal but they found Kaburscorp goalkeeper Sandro Caculo on top of his game.
The home side’s only chance in the first half was a snap shot by Abidal Mvemba on towards the break that was dealt with decisively by the Amakhosi keeper Brendan Peterson. On the hour mark, super-sub Julio Matondo gave his side the lead with a fine header that sailed past Peterson. This was after some dozy defending from Chiefs’ Aiden McCarthy and Paseka Mako. Chiefs fought hard to level matters but the physical Angolans did not break down – in fact, they kept on pushing and shoving the tiny Chiefs players around.
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