Alex Northrand’s Black Poison gains promotion to the SAB League next

Black Poison will be campaigning in the SAB League when that league’s season opens later in the year.

This follows the team’s dramatic 3–2 win over rivals and log leaders Dra FC in the final match of the Alexandra Northrand Local Football Association (Anfla) Promotional League played at the Alexandra Stadium.

Dra topped the league by a solitary point last week at 61 after Poison was dethroned, following a loss to Rangers. Dra just needed a minimum result of a draw in this final match against Poison to secure promotion while it was a must win for Poison.

So, both teams came to this encounter with that frame of mind and it was evident in their play. Poison started their game like a house on fire and piled all the pressure on their opponents who sat back and absorbed it all in the hope of securing the draw.

After dominating play in the first half and showing how desperately they wanted the win, Poison was eventually rewarded for all their hard work when Andile Sibisi scored from an acute angle to give his side the opener and ensure they’re in command of the game.

The Sibisi strike, which came in the dying minutes of the first half, opened a flurry of goals for Poison as their leading marksman and Golden Boot Award-winner, Nkosingiphile Nzimande, struck twice in that space of time to give his side a 3–0 lead into the break.

On resumption, the roles changed as Poison decided to be defensive in the hope of protecting their 3–0 lead while Dra took over the offensive role in search of three or more goals, as they need only a draw to secure promotion.

When Dra launched a wave-after-wave of attack on the Poison goalmouth, the man in black (Poison jersey) decided it was time for an increment of their goal tally and the Dra shot stopper was called into a triple save in quick succession.

But it was not to be as the rewards fell on Dra for their hard work but not before their Smiso Miya fluffed his shot over the crossbar with the Poison keeper, Siyabonga Keswa, well beaten but Miya’s teammate, Sanele Duma, redeemed the situation with an easy tap-in to rattle the back of the net.

Dra’s Jabulani Mthethwa found the back of the net in the dying minutes of the 90 with his powerful shot that left Keswa in sixes and sevens but that was a too little too late and Poison won the game 3–2 when the referee blew his final whistle.

Poison captain Sifundo Mthembu, who was in tears last week when they succumbed to defeat at the hands of Rangers, was full of delight this time around and said he did not have the words to express his excitement and that of his teammates for securing promotion.

“I have to give credit to all my teammates for a job well done, our coaches for guiding us to promotion, our chairman for believing in us and our fans for standing behind us all the time, through thick and thin. We have won it for you all.”

His coach Wiseman Nkabini said, “I am on cloud nine after securing promotion in one of the toughest league seasons of the LFA. This match was a do or die for us and we survived.”

Nkabini’s counterpart at Dra, Mosala Mafikeng, congratulated his opponents for winning promotion and wished them well in their new challenge in the SAB League.

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