KAIZER Chiefs strengthened Orlando Pirates’ hopes of winning the league title by battling Mamelodi Sundowns 1-1 in the Betway Premiership match at Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria, on Wednesday night.
Chiefs were put ahead by Flavio da Silva in the first half, and Sundowns’ Bryan Leon replied in the second half.
Chiefs entered the field to fight for third place on the log to enter the Caf Confederation Cup next season. On the other hand, Sundowns were looking to widen the points gap at the top as they were badly stopped by Pirates who are three points behind with a game to spare. Catching Sundowns by Chiefs helped them and brought them closer to CAF, but it greatly benefited Pirates, who need to win their three games, to put themselves in a good position to win the league title that has eluded them for years. If Sundowns, who have 65 points, win the remaining two games, they will end up with 71 points, which is the same number that Pirates, who are next with 62, can reach if they collect nine points in the last three games. This means that goals can finally be counted to determine the leader of the 2025/2026 season.
On the pitch, Chiefs clarified their strategy to prevent Sundowns from kicking the ball back. This bore fruit in the 25th minute when the goalkeeper of Sundowns, Ronwen Williams, passed the ball to Chiefs and it ended up going to Mduduzi Shabalala, who passed it to Da Silva who put the party on. Sundowns were instructed by Keanu Cupido who played badly against Siphesihle Ndlovu, and was sent off. His place was taken by Grant Kekana. The same thing happened to Chiefs’ Shabalala, who was played badly by Jayden Adams, and Gaston Sirino entered.
In the second half, Sundowns pressed again with intensity. It was good in the 54th minute when Leon headed in the ball that was bent by Thapelo Morena on the right. However, things would come to a head when Adams received a second yellow card for pretending to be fouled. This led to the Chiefs finding a breathing space, creating better opportunities but failing to use them.