Thabang Sibanyoni came off the bench to score the solitary goal to give Magesi a 1-0 victory over Stellenbosch FC during the Betway Premiership match on Saturday evening.
This victory at Seshego Stadium outside Polokwane in Limpopo was all that coach Owen da Gama needed to ease his team’s worries. The club has now moved one position up to 11th on 26 points from 24 matches.
Wasted chances
The home side however survived some early scares as Stellenbosch had forced them back in the opening minutes. They were however let down by the finishing of the likes of Langelihle Phili and Lesiba Nku.
Phili watched in disbelief as his shot from outside the box was cleared off the line by Magesi. This was after the nimble footed star had received a good pass from Andre de Jong in the 14th minute.
Sensing defeat, Magesi fought back and they almost broke the stalemate in the 19th minute, but Kayden Rademer’s shot went wide after he was set up by Delano Abrahams.
Final wake-up call
Six minutes later Magesi came close to scoring again. This time John Mokone set up Abrahams but his shot from outside the box was blocked. From this moment, both sides started attacking each other from all angles but goals continued to elude them.
At the end of the day it was Magesi who had the last laugh. Sibanyoni, who came in as a replacement for Tholang Masegela, fired from the centre of the box to beat the goalkeeper. The ball nestled into the top right corner. Masegela had received a good pass from Mokone in the 70th minute to give the Owen da Gama’s coached side the much needed three vital points.
The victory was sweet revenge for the Polokwane-based side who lost 2-1 away to the visitors in the first round of the season.
Hot on the heels of Amakhosi in the standings
Magesi are now just three points behind 8th placed Kaizer Chiefs who have accumulated 29 points from 23 matches. Magesi spokesperson Abe “The Lip” Rakoma said: “We can now positively say top eight is in reach should we continue to play like this.”
