Pitso Mosimane meets his old nemesis Gavin Hunt going into MTN8 final

30 September 2016 - 15:35 By Mark Gleeson

Two victories for Mamelodi Sundowns over Bidvest Wits last season‚ both home and away in the last league campaign‚ hands Pitso Mosimane the high ground as he again goes up against an old coaching nemesis in Saturday’s MTN8 final in Nelspruit. The meeting between the two clubs is the latest chapter in a long-running battle of wits between coaches Gavin Hunt and Mosimane‚ who first came across each other as opposites on the field during their playing days.Mosimane completed a double over Hunt last season when Sundowns beat Wits 4-2 at home early in the campaign and then again 1-0 away once they had secured their title.But it was only the third and fourth time that Mosimane had emerged victorious in a coaching clash with Hunt‚ who has won eight of their 18 previous meetings.They have shared six draws. Mosimane’s first win came after nine games without success against Hunt when Katlego Mphela scored the only goal for SuperSport United against Moroka Swallows in January 2007.While there is a keen rivalry it is also obvious that there is mutual respect‚ even if they have looked to have lost some conviviality in recent years.When Mosimane was first in charge of the national team in 2007‚ holding down the job while Carlos Alberto Parreira was working out his contract‚ he invited Hunt to travel with as an adviser for a key African Nations Cup qualifier in Lusaka. South Africa won that game 1-0 for one of their best ever away results.HUNT (Leopards‚ Swallows‚ SuperSport‚ Wits) v MOSIMANE (SuperSport‚ Sundowns)‚ head-to-head:2001/02: SuperSport United 1 Black Leopards 1 2002/03: SuperSport United 1 Moroka Swallows 1 Moroka Swallows 3 SuperSport United 1 2003/04: Moroka Swallows 3 SuperSport United 0 SuperSport United 1 Moroka Swallows 4 2004/05: SuperSport United 2 Moroka Swallows 2 Moroka Swallows 0 SuperSport United 0 2005/06: Moroka Swallows 3 SuperSport United 0 SuperSport United 0 Moroka Swallows 1 2006/07: SuperSport United 1 Moroka Swallows 0 Moroka Swallows 0 SuperSport United 0 2012/13: Mamelodi Sundowns 0 SuperSport United 1 2013/14: Mamelodi Sundowns 2 Bidvest Wits 1 Bidvest Wits 3 Mamelodi Sundowns 1 2014/15: Mamelodi Sundowns 0 Bidvest Wits 0 Bidvest Wits 1 Mamelodi Sundowns 0 2015/16: Mamelodi Sundowns 4 Bidvest Wits 2 Bidvest Wits 0 Mamelodi Sundowns 1 - TMG Digital..

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