From the word go, Sundowns were on top, and it didn’t take long for them to eventually find themselves in front.
Mamelodi Sundowns delivered an emphatic message as they hammered Kaizer Chiefs 4-0 in their Carling Knockout Cup quarter-final at a sold-out FNB Stadium on Saturday.
Before the game, Chiefs coach Nasreddine Nabi wanted fans to lower their expectations for the season, and Saturday’s performance was proof that he was right. There is still a lot of work to get the club back to its glory days.
For Sundowns, the game was a beautiful display of the “shoe, shine and piano” style the club became famous for in the 80s and 90s under the tutelage of the late Stanley “Screamer” Tshabalala.
From the word go, Sundowns were on top, and it didn’t take long for them to eventually find themselves in front.
A mistake by Samkelo Zwane in the 12th minute proved costly as Lucas Ribeiro picked up the loose ball and advanced into the box, and was brought down by Njabulo Blom.
The referee pointed to the spot, much to the ire of Chiefs fans, and Iqraam Rayners made no mistake and put Sundowns 1-0 ahead from the resulting penalty.
And minutes later Rayners was at it again and made it 2-0 when he picked up a loose ball on the edge of the 18-yard area after a half-hearted clearance by Chiefs captain Miguel Ignacio and drilled it into the bottom of Faicre Ntwari’s net.
The game could have been over as a contest on the half-hour mark when Rayners linked up beautifully with Peter Shalulile. The Namibian hitman’s shot at goal, though, was brilliantly kept out by Ntwari.
But Shalulile made no mistake in the 40th minute when he guided Aubrey Modiba’s cross from the left wing into Ntwari’s goal to make it 3-0.
And 10 minutes into the second half, things went from bad to worse for the hosts when captain on the night Ignacio was shown a second yellow card and given his marching orders for a foul on Shalulile.
Not long after the red card, Chiefs’ defence was all over the place, and Khuliso Mudau was able to pick up a through pass from Ribeiro and guided the ball into the net for 4-0.
And that’s how it was when the referee blew his whistle to end the game. Sundowns were through to the semi-finals of the Carling Knockout Cup, and Chiefs were out.
Richards Bay reach semi-finals again
In the day’s earlier game at King Zwelithini Stadium in Durban, Richards Bay held their nerve to beat Cape Town City 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out after the game had ended goalless after 120 minutes.
The result meant that the Natal Rich Boyz reached the semi-finals of the Carling Knockout Cup for the second year running.
In regulation and extra time, there was little to separate the two teams as they looked for an opening. The team from KwaZulu-Natal created slightly more goalscoring opportunities, while the Capetonians had the lion’s share of the ball possession.
But, they couldn’t find the back of the net and the game had to be decided by the lottery of the penalty shootout.
Both teams scored with their first two kicks, but Richards Bay went ahead after Cape Town City skipper Thami Mkhize had his saved by Ian Otieno.
Siyabonga Dube could have won it with the last kick for the home side, but he sent his shot skywards. But City didn’t take advantage of the lifeline and Kayden Francis sent his kick in the same direction as Dube.
Moses Mthembu then made no mistake and put the ball past Darren Keet to send the KZN side to the final four.
