Upington City's Ruben Cloete eyes historic breakthrough in Nedbank Cup clash against Durban City

Underdogs Upington City are hoping to harness the unpredictable magic of the Nedbank Cup as they aim to secure a historic place in the last eight at the expense of Durban City on Saturday.

Bafana ba Gucci will host the Citizens at the Mxolisi Dicky Jacobs Stadium in Upington (3pm kickoff), with both sides sensing a genuine opportunity to advance further in the competition and edge closer to a coveted quarter-final spot. 

The two teams renew their rivalry after clashing in the Motsepe Foundation Championship last season. Although Durban City have since earned promotion to the top flight, the familiarity between the sides adds another intriguing layer to the encounter. There is little mystery between the camps, and that knowledge could make for a tightly contested affair.

Upington already carry confidence into the fixture after claiming a notable scalp in the previous round, eliminating Magesi FC in the last 32. That result strengthened their belief that another upset could be on the cards in a tournament famed for defying expectations and rewarding fearless performances.

The Nedbank Cup has a rich history of lower-division sides punching above their weight. University of Pretoria famously reached the final in 2009, while TS Galaxy stunned Kaizer Chiefs to lift the trophy in 2019 in one of the competition’s greatest shocks. 

It is that very spirit that Upington are eager to embrace as they attempt to script their own memorable chapter.

General Manager Ruben Cloete, a former Orlando Pirates and Maritzburg United defender, understands the magnitude of the challenge but believes home advantage could prove crucial in what promises to be a fiercely competitive encounter.

“We look forward to the match on Saturday and hopefully we can use our home advantage to get to the next stage of the competition,” Cloete told the Independent Newspapers.

“We are totally aware of the challenge we are facing, humbly so, but we are confident that we can cause an upset as the underdogs, as it’s not a fluke that they got promoted last season.”

Durban City have impressed since their promotion, spending much of the campaign inside the top eight of the Betway Premiership. Their consistency, despite changes in the technical team, has underlined the strength of their squad and mentality, setting the benchmark for newly promoted sides this season.

“For a newly promoted team, they are doing extremely well under difficult circumstances,” Cloete added. 

“They continue to get results, which says a lot about their culture and mentality. It’s going to be tough.”

Despite their strong cup form, Upington head into the clash on the back of five league matches without a win and currently sit mid-table in the Motsepe Foundation Championship. Cloete, however, insists performances have not reflected the results and believes the breakthrough is close.

“Five matches without a win hasn’t been ideal, but the performances haven’t been poor,” he explained. 

“Our Achilles heel has been converting the chances we create. We are confident we will turn the corner soon and start winning matches.”

* Obakeng Meletse is Independent Media’s multi-sport writer. For fresh video content, follow TheClutch or click the link on the side. YouTube channel The Clutch