You can forgive Mamelodi Sundowns’ fans for thinking their team already has one hand on the Carling Knockout Cup trophy after Sunday’s semi-final draw.
Sundowns progressed to the semi-finals with a 4-0 thumping of Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday. The league champions are the only team currently in the top half of the Betway Premiership table that qualified for the last-four of the tournament which will be played this coming weekend.
Magesi FC, Richards Bay and Marumo Gallants currently feature in the bottom six of the Premiership standings, but have fought above their weight to make it to the semis.
The newly-promoted Magesi caused the upset of the tournament of the tournament when they beat Orlando Pirates 3-2 in the round of 16 at Orlando Stadium. They followed up that win with a 1-0 win over TS Galaxy in the quarters on Sunday.
Clinton Larson’s Magesi will take on Richards Bay in the semis, after the KwaZulu-Natal side managed to see off Cape Town City FC in the quarters after a dramatic penalty shootout after finishing the game with 10 men on the park.
Sundowns will face Marumo Gallants, who dumped defending Carling Knockout champions Stellenbosch FC out of the competition with a 1-0 victory at the Petrus Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein.
Gallants’ league form has been pretty poor, as they sit 14th in the standings, with only one win and a draw to show for themselves after six matches.
They will, however, have a week to prepare for the match, while Sundowns have a mid-week assignment against Polokwane City in the league to look forward to.
The Free State side also have added incentive to make the final, as it will be hosted at their second home - the Free State Stadium - in Bloemfontein on November 23.
But it’s going to be tough to look past Sundowns to clinch the trophy. If they rock up with the same quality they showed in the win over Chiefs, they are going to hard to stop.
Carling Knockout Cup semi-finals (venues and times TBC):
Richards Bay vs Magesi FC
Marumo Gallants vs Mamelodi Sundowns
@JohnGoliath82