Cape Town — Giant-killers Dondol Stars, who have pulled off upset victories over Premiership clubs SuperSport United and AmaZulu, have been drawn to play Orlando Pirates in the Nedbank Cup quarter-finals.
The Nedbank Cup quarter-final draw was held in Johannesburg on Monday evening with the dates and venues for the matches to be confirmed at a later stage.
Dondol Stars, a third-tier outfit, vying to climb out of the ABC Motsepe League (Gauteng Province), have captured the imagination of the football fraternity after their back-to-back giant-killing acts. As a result, the Mamelodi-based club is already guaranteed to pocket R400 000 for advancing to the quarter-finals.
Pirates coach Jose Riveiro said he expected the amateur side to come at them hard after their startling wins over SuperSport and AmaZulu.
”It is going to be a tough one like previous games for us," said Riveiro. "We know that they are not here by chance.
“We are playing a team that is not playing in the same division as us, so they will be motivated to play against us.”
For the first time since 2014, South Africa's 'Big Three' - Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns - have all reached the Nedbank Cup quarter-finals.
The remaining three matches are all-Premiership affairs.
Runaway DStv Premiership leaders Sundowns will host Stellenbosch, who scored a crushing 6-3 win over Galaxy on Sunday.
Kaizer Chiefs clash with Royal AM, and in the remaining match, Chippa United will take on Sekhukhune United.
The teams who reach the semi-final round will pocket R1-million. The teams reaching the final are guaranteed R2.5m, and the winner takes home R7m.
Nedbank Cup quarter-finals
Dondol Stars v Orlando Pirates
Mamelodi Sundowns v Stellenbosch FC
IOL Sport