Orlando Pirates beat Polokwane City Football Club 2-1 in their 12th match of the Premier Soccer League (PSL) to take first position of the league at Peter Mokaba Stadium on Tuesday evening.
Both teams came into the match in high spirits following their impressive wins over the weekend.
All previous PSL matches between the two teams have over the past three seasons ended in draws.
Pirates’s goals came from Brazilian Caio Marcelo and Zambian Justin Shonga in the second half of the match.
Ayanda Nkili who missed a penalty against Super Sport United Football Club in their last 16 match of the Telkom Knockout a fortnight ago scored a consolation goal for City in the 90th minute.
Addressing the media during a post match interview, City’s Head Coach, Jozef Vukusic said he was proud of the team’s performance despite losing the match. “It was a good match which was decided in the first 20 minutes of the second half. But I have to give credit to my players that even at 2-0 down they played until the finish. We had opportunities and it is unlucky that we missed chances. We needed maybe five minutes more to win the match, but I am happy about my team’s performance.”
Milutin Sredojevic, head coach of Polokwane City Football Club said they were happy to finally win a match against Polokwane City. “These three points mean a lot to us, especially as since 2015 Pirates have not beaten Polokwane City so even that mental hill we jumped over and succeeded. The win means a lot to us because confidence you can get only by winning,” Sredojevic said the in the post match interviews.
Story and photos: Herbert Rachuene
>>herbert.observer@gmail.com
