Pirates keep league hopes alive with victory against Polokwane

Defender Nkosinathi Sibisi is proving to be a vital cog in Orlando Pirates' push to wrestle the Betway Premiership from seven-time successive champions Mamelodi Sundowns.

The Bafana defender scored a second winner for Pirates in a league match this season, this time giving Jose Riveiro's side a 1-0 win over Polokwane City in a game played at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Saturday. 

Sibisi's other league goal was away to Chippa United last month where his header gave the Buccaneers another precious 1-0 win in their bid to catch up with Sundowns. 

Sibisi's strike against Polokwane was quite fortuitous, as the ball bounced off his feet and went in after Polokwane goalkeeper Brian Bwire failed to handle Kabelo Dlamini's free kick in the 67th minute.

This goal came at a time when Pirates were creating as many chances in a lively match in which both sides were looking to create goalscoring opportunities.

The win draws Pirates closer to Sundowns who are still 12 points ahead having played three more matches than Bucs.

But with Royal AM likely to be dismissed by the PSL in the coming week, Sundowns' lead could be cut by three points as all the points gained against the troubled side are likely to be expunged. Pirates were yet to play Royal AM and could really catch up with Sundowns if they win all their games in hand. 

In a bid to show appreciation to their coach Riveiro, who will be leaving the club at the end of the season after three successful seasons in which he won three domestic trophies, Pirates players had to dig deep to win this match against a side that never stopped running and trying to upset them.

Pirates have a chance to add three more trophies if they win the league, Nedbank Cup and Caf Champions League in their remaining two months of the season. Three days after this victory Pirates will play another crucial match when they welcome Algeria's MC Alger in the second leg of the Champions League quarterfinal. 

Though Pirates were away, the 68% of ball possession they had in the first half showed their dominance against a team that was keen to catch them on the break with Bafana Bafana winger Oswin Appollis posing most of the danger for the home side. 

The creation of clear-cut chances is what Pirates lacked as they only had three shots on target in the first 45 minutes that they dominated with Mofokeng and Patrick Maswanganyi pivotal in their attack.

There was little action in vital areas for Bucs striker Evidence Makgopa who must have looked forward to this fixture having scored a brace when these two sides met in Orlando in September when Bucs won 3-0. 

It was Mofokeng who tested Polokwane goalkeeper Bwire a couple of times in the first half. The Bucs attacker was particularly unlucky to see his touch missing the poles when he looked to finish off Mohau Nkota's pass after a miscued clearance by a Polokwane defender. 

Key to Pirates keeping a clean sheet, especially in the second half when Polokwane improved their attacking, was central defender Mbekezeli Mbokazi who played like a seasoned defender in outsmarting Appollis and Bonginkosi Dlamini.