The Nedbank Cup journey for Bidvest Wits ended on a chilling crescendo as the winter trails grew on Saturday night at Orlando stadium in Soweto, Johannesburg.
In the second Nedbank semifinal duel of the day, Mamelodi Sundowns beat The Clever Boys 3-2 in regulation time.
Earlier in the afternoon, Bloemfontein Celtic annihilated Baroka FC 3-0 at the same venue.
The double-header cup semifinalists savoured a mouthwatering 8-goal festivity without fans in the stands. A rare pictureque.
Until yesterday, South Africans have been hunkering down for local football action for nearly 5 months owing to the coronavirus pandemic which swept the globe by a catastrophic storm. (The viral scourge has not ceased ever since and is still a relentless threat in many regions of the world.)
The Brazilians’ account opener was a 38th minute penalty conversion by Ricardo Nascimento. After a long spell, Terrence Dzukamanja (76’) pulled the equalizer for Wits.
From that point onwards, it was game on. That leveler triggered a tit-for-tat offensive from both the Premier Soccer League (PSL) elite teams. With both teams amenable to have a go at each other, the game poured (more) goals.
Sibusiso Vilakazi who was battling under sturdy frame made way for Keletso Makgalwa. The latter rewarded his coach [Pitso Mosimane] by firing Sundowns to a second lead of the cup game on the 85th minute.
It soon became apparent that victory was within reach for Sundowns. However, that man again, Dzukamanja, cancelled the premature win a minute late, completing his brace. It was not long before the parity was shaken off its weak foundations yet again.
Lyle Lakay who substituted Themba Zwane smothered Wits’ hopes for a cup final bid on Sep. 8, 2020. His tame left-footed free-kick curler, in 5 minutes of added time, beat Wits goalkeeper Brighton Mhlongo at the outermost end of the post.
Celtic booked their cup-final berth through Ndumiso Mabena’s (45+5’) penalty strike and Victor Letsoalo’s double bite at the cherry (83’ pen., 90+4’).
Barako FC finished the game with 10 players after Ananias Gebhardt received the matching orders 32 minutes from kick off. Shuttering their silverware attempt with a whimper.
The Nedbank Cup final between Sundowns and Celtic will be the last match to wrap up the 2019/20 rendition.
The 8th of August marked the return of professional domestic football staged in a “bio-bubble” set up in the Gauteng province. All the 32-club PSL players were tested on two occasions before entering the no-exit bio-bubble until the last kick of the season.