Unlike last season when Orlando Pirates fell victim to the outside noise that the league may just be gone, it doesn’t seem to be the case this time around, as they look like a totally different team that is very much up for the task at hand.
Pirates came back from a goal down to steal all three points from Cape Town City – a result and performance that will surely come in handy in their Betway Premiership title chase against Mamelodi Sundowns, who are chasing their eighth consecutive league title.
The Buccaneers grabbed an important 2-1 win over a well-organised Cape Town City side yesterday at Orlando Stadium. Their talisman Tshegofatso Mabasa equalised in the second half – his fifth goal of the season and 13th in all competitions – while Mosele put the icing on the cake with his goal right at the death.
Back to Mabasa, he may have just caught the attention of Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos, who at eSgodini alongside his right-hand man Helman Mkhalele is currently the best striker in the Premier Soccer League (PSL).
The sharpshooting Mabasa is on track to surpass Benedict “Tso” Vilakazi as the club’s all-time top scorer in the PSL era as he is now just nine goals away from the milestone.
Again, the Pirates supporters came out in their numbers to rally behind the team.
Jose Riveiro’s men may have just started the game on the back foot, squandering some opportunities and but were lacking their usual composure in the final third and the much-needed aggression when it mattered the most in the first half, they came back stronger in the second stanza.
In their title chase, Pirates are, however, going up against a point machine in Sundowns – who usually at this time of the season are cruising with a huge point lead.
The Sea Robbers still have three games in hand – one against the financially troubled Royal AM. But games in hand don’t ultimately result in wins – a message one would expect Riveiro has passed on to his team.
Riveiro is a cool and collected coach and it seems his qualities are rubbing off on his players and yesterday was a testament to that as his side did not panic when a goal down.
On the touchline, there was a contrast of characters with an animated Muhsin Ertugral in the opponent’s dugout – who evidently was confident his side would bounce back and win.
The title race is still very much alive, and it would be interesting to witness it go down to the wire after it has been a one-horse title race for almost a decade.
