XI Experience wins local derby to go through to SAB League playoffs final
Local team makes it to the finals.
Kwa-Thema-based XI Experience got revenge over rivals Sibiya FC, after beating them 2-1 in a tightly-contested Ekurhuleni SAB League promotion decider derby semi-final at the Vosloorus Stadium, on Sunday.
Goals in each half by Kagiso Tjia and Tumelo Pole secured their place in the final, where they will meet Luso Africa at the Sinaba Stadium in Daveyton this weekend. Luso beat Kempton Park FC 3-0 earlier on Sunday.
Asinavalo avenged last season’s loss to Sibiya, who beat them on penalties at the same stage of the promotion playoffs. This season’s win was impressive, as it came just five days after they beat Cambridge FC in their rescheduled final league match also at the Vosloorus Stadium.
The Kwa-Thema neighbours exchanged blows from the first whistle in the well-attended match. It was an end-to-end contest with the first shot at goal parried over the crossbar by the XI Experience goalkeeper Siphiwe Nkosi in only three minutes into the match.
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Sibiya were awarded two free kicks outside the 18-yard box in the first-half but failed to make the opposition goalkeeper work on both occasions by instead hitting the ball into the defending wall.
XI Experience looked the more threatening on attack, using Motsamai Mazibuko to good effect.
It was his though his fortuitous assistance that saw Tjia pounce on a high ball inside the penalty area, opening the scoring via a free header in the 24th minute.
After Pole’s second half strike, Sibiya pulled one back via Absolom Maliwa’s penalty late in the half to make it a tense final few minutes, but XI Experience managed to hold on for the win.
Their captain Gadi Qwele said, “It was a tough game – from the first whistle. We expected them to apply pressure on us but, we also expected today’s result. We knew we’d win but that we wouldn’t win comfortably.
“It is very sweet revenge and we’re quite happy about that because we were on the losing side at this stage last season. But we shouldn’t undermine them, they played well but we deserved the win.”
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