On a slightly warmer evening than many would have been used to in Johannesburg, Wits hosted UWC at a vibrant Bidvest Stadium. The hosts were coming off a 3-2 win at UKZN, while the visitors suffered a 1-2 loss at the hands of NWU in the first round of fixtures.
The Witsies were also yet to beat UWC in the tournament, since its inception, with UWC getting two victories over the home team, one in a semi-final penalty shootout and a 6-0 victory last season in the Western Cape. In this year’s encounter, however, Wits finally broke the duck and clinched a nailbiting 1-0 at the death thanks to the boot of Waylan Rooi.
The game itself was a really cagey affair in the opening few moments, with both teams exchanging position with no real clear opportunities being created. Wits did, however, eventually get a bit of a grip on the game, with their midfield duo of Mahle Mtabane and Saluleko Mathonsi orchestrating the attacks. The visitors would, however, also get a few opportunities of their own before the break but it wasn’t to be, as both teams went into the interval at 0-0.
The second half promised some great action in the opening stanza, but things ended in just ‘ohhhh’s and ahhh’s’ from the home crowd. The visitors did try getting the lead but the Wits defence always managed to scramble the ball out their half, and look to create great counter-attacking opportunities.
UWC shot stopper Renaldo Leaner had a great game keeping his side in the game with a few fantastic saves and commanding his defence very well. Wits suffered a setback when Baliwe Moyakhe had to come off the pitch injured. But this seemed to spur the hosts on and they completely dominated the last few moments in the game, with small man Waylan Rooi adding the cherry on top, with a goal from close range at the death, to give Wits a nail-biting 1-0 victory and make it two from of two.
TUT stunned as UL earn their first point.
TUT came back to secure a draw against UL in Limpopo on August 2 as the newcomers earned a historic draw at home.
TUT goal came from Lebogang Phatlane while Percy Tokelo found the back of the net for UL.
Tuks and UJ share the spoils in a late-goal thriller.
UJ thought they had won the match with a late goal in the final 10 minutes of the match, but Tuks had other plans as the two teams shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw in Soweto.
UJ drew 1-1 with Tuks at the UJ Soweto Stadium on Thursday evening, with the match remaining goalless until the dying moments when UJ finally broke the deadlock before Tuks replied almost immediately.
Defending Varsity Football champions Tuks went into the second match day of the competition looking to bag three points after losing 1-2 to TUT at home last week Thursday.
Photo: Varsity Sports.
The first few minutes of the match was a physical contest between the two teams as both started off showing that their only intention was to score. Soon it turned into one way traffic as UJ was looking more and more dominant with Tuks doing a good job defensively to keep the home team at bay.
There was a promising attempt from UJ to open the scoring when Mokete Mokgaila made a square pass to Keitumetse Mabathoana who hit his shot straight at the Tuks goalkeeper Yurie Mortimer. The first stanza ultimately ended 0-0 with each side failing to open the scoring.
After the break, UJ had an opportunity to open the scoring after they managed to break through the Tuks defence but centre-half Sabelo Tsambo came to the rescue with a clearance off the goal line. He was later booked for a harsh tackle on UJ’s Tebogo Mandyu, who bagged two goals in the previous week against UL.
UJ finally scored after numerous attempts when Mokete Mogaila caught Yurie Mortimer off his line and took a cheeky shot from distance, which found the back of the net in the 81st minute. The away side hit back almost immediately when Richard Moremi went for a bicycle kick and Chinedu Okolo capitalised with a header from close range. In the dying minutes of the game, both teams were desperate to grab all three points with both opting for attacking football.
NWU exact revenge on UKZN
North-West University (NWU) paid their revenge to University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) for the USSA final loss earlier this year, with a 2-0 victory in KZN on Thursday night.
NWU claimed their second win of this year’s Varsity Football season when they defeated their USSA finalist rivals by 2-0.
NWU came looking for revenge as soon as the match kicked off and were rewarded for their hunger in the 15th minute when they were awarded a penalty. Tebogo Mokgobo calmly converted from the spot.
The second goal arrived soon after that. In the 36th minute, Lebogang Phetlhu finished clinically to kill any momentum the home side may have felt.
Moments before half-time, the newcomers gifted the visitors with a second penalty, but Tebogo Mokgobo stepped up again only to shoot wayward this time around.
UKZN tried to play their way back into the game in the second half, however, they failed to convert any of their multiple opportunities and left the home fans disappointed.
The 0-2 defeat means a second defeat for UKZN as NWU snatch a second win of the season and move to the top of the log while UKZN moves to the bottom.
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