Jonty Mark

By Jonty Mark

Football Editor


Matthews says Sundowns just want to keep on winning

'It feels good … breaking records as a team and we have an opportunity to take it even further,' said the Sundowns forward.


Mamelodi Sundowns forward Tashreeq Matthews says Masandawana are in no mood to stop winning, despite the champions having already broken the DStv Premiership points record for a 30-game season.

Sundowns reached 72 points when they saw off Stellenbosch 1-0 at Athlone Stadium on Saturday, going past the 71 points reached by Pitso Mosimane’s Sundowns in the 2015/16 season.

Rulani Mokwena’s side also have a chance to become the first South African team in the Premier Soccer League era to go an entire top flight campaign without losing a match.

Sundowns will play TS Galaxy on Tuesday evening at Mbombela Stadium, and will finish off their Premiership campaign at home to Cape Town City on Saturday.

“It was a great achievement, we made history, but there is an opportunity to go even further,” said Matthews on breaking the points record.

“The next game against Galaxy we want to take it to 75 (points) and then we have one more game against Cape Town City to take it to 78.

“It feels good … breaking records as a team and we have an opportunity to take it even further.”

The 23 year-old Matthews has four goals in ten league appearances since joining Sundowns from Swedish side Sirius in the January transfer window.

Tuesday’s Galaxy game is a fixture rescheduled from early March, when the Rockets had a request to postpone the game granted by the PSL, after their team bus was involved in a car accident on the N4/Schoemanskloof Road, in which the driver of a VW Polo was killed.

Galaxy rematch

Sundowns did lose on penalties to Galaxy at Mbombela Stadium, following a 2-2 draw in the Telkom Knockout last 16 in October.

The Brazillians, however, thumped Galaxy 3-0 in a top flight game at Loftus Stadium as recently as April 29, with Peter Shalulile grabbing a brace and Thembinkosi Lorch also getting on the scoresheet.

“We played them not too long ago … of course as always we will have more possession,” said Matthews.

“At times they will go into a low block. It will be challenging for us to get through, but we need to find ways to get behind the lines and in between the lines and we just have to make use of our opportunities to score.”

For more news your way

Download our app and read this and other great stories on the move. Available for Android and iOS.

For more news your way

Download The Citizen App for IOS and Android