ORLANDO PIRATES (2)
Dlamini 86’, Makgopa 89’
MAGESI (3)
Abrams 32, Sesane (og) 39, Chirambadare 45+4
Magesi had ‘too much energy’ in their batteries so much so that they exposed Orlando Pirates’ MTN8 final hangover blues in the Carling Knockout Cup last 16 yesterday afternoon.
The newbies beat Pirates 3-2 at a sunny Orlando Stadium to progress to the next round of the cup, making a mockery of Pirates’ newly found ‘cup specialist’ tag.
The Bucs came into this game on the back of winning the MTN8, their unprecedented third trophy in a row and fifth overall under coach Jose Riveiro in three seasons.
And having the Bucs been favourites for this game, they were expected to beat Magesi en route to challenging for this domestic cup which was their only blemish last season.
But it wasn’t to be. The visitors took the Fak’uGesi (bring the energy) slogan of this competition to another level, almost proving that their name Magesi means the mother of energies.
☠️ FT | @orlandopirates 2 - 3 @Magesi_FC
— Orlando Pirates (@orlandopirates) October 19, 2024
⚫⚪🔴⭐#MatchDay#OrlandoPirates #OnceAlways pic.twitter.com/7URoTiWhXs
The ongoing hangover in the country is said to take longer than usual to recover from. And boy, it seemed Pirates had drunk all the alcoholic beverages after their MTN8 triumph.
They had the ‘mother of hangovers’ in the first half, Magesi, on the other hand, proving to have all the gesi (energy) whenever they made an inroad into the half.
The Sea Robbers had made a false start – as if they had their batteries fully charged – taking the game to the visitors with pace and skill.
Relebohile Mofokeng who had landed on the wee hours of Thursday morning from international duty didn’t seem to suffer from jetlag either as- he was the conductor of the orchestra.
But for all Mofokeng and Co’s bright start, they just couldn’t penetrate Magesi’s wall, with their energies all but going into total waste.
Mofokeng, Tshegofatso Mabasa, Karim Kimvuidi, Monnapule Saleng all banged at Elvis Chipezeze’s door without any success.
The going was getting tougher for Pirates that even when Riveiro made his famous kneel gesture – either plotting or praying – there were just no answers for him.
Pirates’ batteries proved to be made of counterfeit – just like the alcohol that’s said to be giving a heavy hangover – as they died down incredibly after the half-hour mark.
Magesi thereafter embodied their name!
A quick counterattack found Wonderboy Makhubu on the end of the box, and he cleverly picked up Delano Abrahams who headed home on the far post.
One soon became two. Tshepo Kakora made an inroad from the edge of the box before unleashing a shot which came off defender Thabiso Sesane and beat Sipho Chaine in goal.
The Bafana international clasped his hands over his hands in sheer regret and disappointment, while the entire Magesi bench and their handful of supporters erupted in euphoria.
Pirates’ defence completely looked out of sorts – the void left by injured captain Olisa Ndah, who’s expected to be out for some time, totally exposed.
You see, while Sesane may have started the season on a high, leading to getting his first Bafana call-up, his batteries were expected to be irregular with time, hitting highs and lows.
And today was unfortunately all about the latter. The 24-year-old conceded a stoppage time penalty before half-time after Abrahams danced his way into the box.
Edmore Chirambadare drew out a save from Chaine from the spot-kick, but the Zimbabwean was still on hand, and isolated, to head home the rebound.
Riveiro’s talk during the break seemed to inject back energy into his team. Pirates huffed and puffed for a comeback in the second half, including Mabasa hitting the upright, but it was too little, too late.
Kabelo Dlamini drilled one home four minutes before regulation time, bringing a glimmer of hope to the Ghost who had been fighting referee Thando Ndzandzeka since trailing.
The comeback looked to be truly on as Evidence Makgopa scored Pirates’ second in close to no-time after his shot at goal took a deflection from Kgaogelo Sekgota.
Pirates had a shout for a penalty turned down by Ndzandzeka to the irk of the supporters who started to throw more objects into the pitch.
The Ghosts’ anger reached fever pitch when Ndzandzeka rightfully ruled out Mohau Nkota’s equaliser for an offside as they threw more objects into the pitch.
Ndzandzeka and his crew were whisked off the pitch by heavy security as the Pirates players bade for his blood, while SAPS and private security also surrounded the pitch.