Siphesihle Ndlovu announced himself to Kaizer Chiefs supporters as he came from the bench to score a winner that gave Amakhosi a second successive victory in a Betway Premiership match played at the FNB Stadium on Wednesday night.
Before Ndlovu pounced on Reeve Frosler's pass inside the area, many Chiefs fans were resigning themselves to another dull draw against a stubborn Polokwane City side which did little to show they wanted anything other than a point from this game.
Ndlovu's goal in the 78th minute lit up a match that was unwatchable as Chiefs battled to start it the way they finished in their opening fixture away to Stellenbosch FC where they won 2-0 on Sunday.
The win is a huge boost for Chiefs, who are now joint top of the log with Durban City, and ahead on goal difference to Marumo Gallants and Sekhukhune United, the other two teams that have won both their opening league matches.
Perhaps the short turnaround time contributed to Chiefs' lethargic display, but you would have thought with two fresh players in Sibongiseni Mthethwa and Gaston Sirino coming in for Nkosingiphile Ngcobo and Naledi Hlongwane, that they would not be short of energy.
While Polokwane relied on the counter in trying to get a goal, Chiefs struggled to produce a final ball once they reached the third part of the pitch. Frustrated, they started to shoot from outside the area and it was through one of those pot shots that Glody Lilepo nearly caught Polokwane keeper Brian Bwire off guard in one of the decent attempts Chiefs had in the first half.
Needing a bit of creativity in the middle, Chiefs stand-in coach Khalil Ben Youssef introduced Ngcobo at the restart for striker Mduduzi Shabalala who struggled to find the openings playing alongside Wandile Duba up front.
While Ngcobo did his best to boost Chiefs going forward, Sirino was not helping matters as he lost a lot of possession in the final third when he couldn't produce a shot or pass to the forwards.
Sirino was eventually pulled out for Pule Mmodi, while a tired looking Thabo Cele made way for the match winner Ndlovu with more than 25 minutes left on the clock.
The win gives Chiefs a huge boost ahead of two more home games against Richards Bay and Mamelodi Sundowns before they finish the month of August with an away fixture against Lamontville Golden Arrows in Durban.
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