Sundowns shoot down Arrows to move closer to defending Premiership title
Mamelodi Sundowns have one hand on the Absa Premiership with one round of league fixtures remaining.
The defending champions overcame Lamontville Golden Arrows 2-0 at Loftus on Tuesday night to leapfrog Orlando Pirates to the top of the log by two points courtesy of well-taken first half goals by skipper Hlompho Kekana and Themba Zwane.
Sundowns take on Free State Stars in their last match of the season at Goble Park on Saturday, in what will be their 47th match of the season in all competitions, looking for a win that will put their championship credentials beyond any doubt.
If they get all the three points against Stars, it will be the occasion of coach Pitso Mosimane’s fourth league title in just over five years with the club to equal Gordon Igesund, Gavin Hunt and Ted Dumitru and the sixth for imperious Kekana.
As a result of this win, Sundowns have accumulated 56 points and another victory in their last match will see them cross the line irrespective of what Pirates, who have 54 points, do in their last match against Polokwane City at Orlando Stadium.
The spanner in the works could be an appeal that has been launched by the Premier Soccer League (PSL) against the ruling of the Disciplinary Committee where Sundowns were fined for fielding ineligible Wayne Arendse against Bidvest Wits.
The PSL wants Wits the match 3-0 to substitute the fine that was imposed by the DC on the club and that Arendse be suspended for two matches.
Sundowns prevailed by two goals and their keeper Denis Onyango kept a clean sheet but they could have won by a bigger margin. They wasted many chances from good scoring positions against this Arrows side that did not offer too much on the night.
The opening goal of the match arrived as early as the third minute when Zwane released Kekana with a clever back pass and the Sundowns captain had the easiest task of beating Arrows goalkeeper Maximiliano Mbaeva.
Kekana, who led from the front like Vincent Kompany did in Manchester City’s 1-0 win over Leicester City on Monday, appeared to have been in an offside position when he received the ball from Zwane before he opened the scoring.
Two minutes later, Gaston Sirino took advantage of a misplaced pass from an Arrows player in the midfield and he quickly released Zwane who managed to slot the ball past Mbaeva as the Brazilians made their intentions of winning this match clear from the start.