League

Mneketshe
Spectators: 6955 (Terracing: 5000, Seating: 1955, VIP seats: 0) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Jikolo Qabi started the match with the kick off. Lindo Strauss came out of the goal in the 5th minute to try and stop a shot by Ihluku's Papi Melele. But to his dismay, Papi Melele quickly shot the ball in between his legs and into the goal making it 0-1. After a defensive mix-up in Ihluku's zone, Johann Thwala stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Siyabonge Ntsume came out of the goal and Johann Thwala tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Lindo Strauss didn't have a chance when a screaming shot from Jikolo Qabi went, in the 12th minute, to the upper right corner, 0-2 was the resulting score. Themba Mangope struck a weak shot in the 20th minute. Lindo Strauss didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Ihluku. In the 22nd minute Papi Melele shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Lindo Strauss saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Johann Thwala kicked well hit freekick during the 24th minute of the match. A collision led to Mneketshe getting a freekick after 26 minutes play. Ebrahim Mandla hit a great ball. Papi Melele struck a weak shot in the 29th minute. Lindo Strauss didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Ihluku. The referee was alert and spotted a serious foul by Ebrahim Mandla during the 33rd minute. The player immediately received a yellow card. In the 33rd match minute, Mneketshe was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Ebrahim Mandla to maneuver through the defense. After 38 minutes of play, Ihluku's Papi Melele made it 0-3 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Lindo Strauss was left in no man's land by his defense there! In the 42nd minute Papi Melele shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Lindo Strauss saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Jikolo Qabi sent away a hard shot on goal in the 43rd minute, but the ball hit the crossbar and went out. A very good chance for a goal. The crowd was extremely unhappy with the home team's performance in the first half. They were losing 0-3.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Timothy King was the one to do the kick off. 55 minutes into the match, Mneketshe's goal looked a bit too open when Jikolo Qabi came free, but Lindo Strauss reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Ihluku's Simamane Tau was first on the ball when the corner was shot and he dangerously headed the ball towards goal, but Lindo Strauss in the goal jumped up to prevent it from getting in. Lindo Strauss took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Themba Mangope, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. The audience thought a goal was coming when Papi Melele got free with Lindo Strauss in the 60th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. When Vuyo Mathibe fell near the penalty area in the 61st minute he thought he would be awarded a free kick. The referee ignored Mneketshe's protests and gave Vuyo Mathibe a yellow card for diving instead. In the 61st minute, Vuyo Mathibe hit a crossing free kick to the open man running down the field. After a defensive mix-up in Ihluku's zone, Timothy King stole the ball and had only the goalie to beat. Siyabonge Ntsume came out of the goal and Timothy King tried to chip the ball over his head. To his dismay, the ball went over the crossbar and out of play. Justice Bartlett hit a great freekick 69 minutes into the match. Timothy King recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 76th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. Stanton Khomane hit a great freekick 77 minutes into the match. When Michael Mothobi came up free with the goalie in the 82nd minute, the Ihluku 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 Michael Mothobi couldn't finish the play. In the 89th minute, Papi Melele left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Ihluku fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 0-4. Jikolo Qabi struck a weak shot in the 94th minute. Lindo Strauss didn't even have to move as the ball rolled over the line well wide of the goal. A wasted opportunity for Ihluku. Papi Melele could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 96th minute of the match, but Lindo Strauss made a huge save. With a little luck, Mneketshe's Lindo Strauss got control of the ball when Papi Melele tried to sneak it across the goal line. Ihluku's players went to the stands to thank the travelling support. The fan's backing had helped spurr the team on to a fine performance that won them the match.