Pirates edge Cape Town City to jump into second place

Orlando Pirates jumped to second after fighting their way back into the game to win 2-1 against Cape Town City, in a tightly contested DStv Premiership clash at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday. 

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The victory was important for the Buccaneers, with the team chasing a second-place finish in order to qualify for the Caf Champions League.

Bucs were trailingjust before the half-hour mark, but managed to bounce back before half-time and eventually get the second goal. It was a fairly balanced game in the first half, with some end-to-end action.

But, it was City who would go on to find the back of the net just 18 minutes into the game courtesy of Khanyiso Mayo.

The visitors’ goal made the home side pick up the tempo of the game, as they created a couple of opportunities to score.

In the 22nd minute, Kabelo Dlamini had an attempt at goals from just outside the range, but his shot went over the bar.

Bucs didn’t put their heads down as they kept on persisting, while the Western Cape outfit were looking to extend the lead.

The Buccaneers finally got to bounce back into the game just three minutes to the half hour mark, thanks to a Terrence Dzvukamanja header.

The two teams went hard at each other with Bucs looking more likely to get the second goal, but they ended up going into the break at 1-1.

In the second half, it was all about the chase for the lead, with some promising attacking coming from both sides.

Pirates substitute Fortune Makaringe was presented with a great opportunity to put his side in the lead, but his attempt didn’t trouble City keeper Darren Keet in the 61st minute.

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After a couple of times trying and not finding a way to unblock the City defence,  Pirates finally managed to get their second goal of the match through a well-taken goal by Monnapule Saleng in the 76th minute.

In the end, it was Bucs who would go on to take maximum points. Pirates are now in second place with 46 points after 26 games, two clear of third-placed SuperSport United.