League

Pinelands Park
Spectators: 7828 (Terracing: 5872, Seating: 1800, VIP seats: 156) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Nkosi Laher started the match with the kick off. In the 3rd minute, Akil Sono made a precise shot to the right of Ismail Mhlongo. Poung's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 1-0. In the 6th minute Mpenza Tau shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Alfred Madiya saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 8 minutes into the match, Pine Lands AFC's goal looked a bit too open when Bomikaze Etafia came free, but Alfred Madiya reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Nick Thembe struck a weak shot in the 16th minute. Ismail Mhlongo didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Pine Lands AFC. Nick Thembe fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 21st minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Ismail Mhlongo having to interfere. Nick Thembe received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 26th minute. Ismail Mhlongo tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. If Akil Sono had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 28th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. In the 30th minute, Mpenza Tau left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Poung fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 1-1. Simamane Josephs hit a great freekick 34 minutes into the match. Alfred Madiya made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Nkosi Laher in the 35th minute of play. Bomikaze Etafia received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 37th minute. Alfred Madiya tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. 39 minutes into the match, Pine Lands AFC's goal looked a bit too open when Mpenza Tau came free, but Alfred Madiya reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. In the 40th minute Nkosi Laher shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Alfred Madiya saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Akil Sono's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Ismail Mhlongo read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 42nd minute of play. In the 43rd minute, Bomikaze Etafia got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. 44 minutes into the game, Akil Sono was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Pine Lands AFC's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Poung the free kick. After a rather tough play, Pine Lands AFC's Akil Sono got a free kick in the 44th minute. After the first half the score was level. The break gave the players a chance to catch their breath, whilst the managers went over the tactics with them again.

When the second half was about to start, both teams quickly lined up and Akil Sono made a kick off. Nkosi Laher was really disappointed when he shot the ball just outside the right post instead of scoring a goal in the 53rd minute. Poung's manager could be seen on the sidelines shaking his head and muttering to himself as his team had just wasted another chance. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Mpenza Tau during the 54th minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. In the 55th minute, Mpenza Tau hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Nick Thembe missed a clear chance of a goal when in the 62 minute of the game fired away a shot, but unfortunally the ball went out to the Ismail Mhlongo right hand side. If Akil Sono had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 64th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Alfred Madiya showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Nkosi Laher, who was totally free with the ball in the 68th minute. Simamane Josephs's late challenge caught a Pine Lands AFC's player on the shin and left him crawling around in pain. The referee blew his whistle and produced the yellow card. Simamane Josephs helped the player get up and apologised. In the 71st minute, Simamane Josephs hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. Akil Sono fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 73rd minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Ismail Mhlongo having to interfere. It was beautiful to see Pine Lands AFC's Nick Thembe in action when he in the 76th minute dribbled his way through a couple of opponents and the fired away a shot from almost standing still. First the ball seemed to get in, but turned out to be on the outside of the net. A great chance! When Mpenza Tau came up free with the goalie in the 78th minute, the Poung fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Mpenza Tau couldn't finish the play. Jakob Nunes hit a great freekick 81 minutes into the match. An unexpectedly hard shot by Nkosi Laher in the 83rd minute of play forced Pine Lands AFC's goalkeeper Alfred Madiya to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Ismail Mhlongo showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Nick Thembe in the 89th minute of the match. In the 91st match minute, Poung was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Nkosi Laher to maneuver through the defense. In the 92nd minute, Lindo Mokatimi sent off a long shot on goal, but the shot was nowhere near the goal and Poung's Ismail Mhlongo didn't even have to move. After some fancy dribbling in the 94th minute, Akil Sono managed to get in a good position for a shot. Pine Lands AFC's supporters rose to their feet, but Akil Sono was a bit off balance and shot the ball just wide of the left post. Ismail Mhlongo breathed a sigh of relief and went to take the goal kick. Despite being the better team, Pine Lands AFC failed to find the winning goal and were forced to settle for a single point.