Orlando Pirates has advanced to the finals of the Carling Knockout Cup final, after beating a stubborn Richards Bay 1-0 at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday afternoon.Tshepang Moremi strike in the 42nd minute ensured that the Buccaneers reach their 10th cup final in a space of five seasons.
The match wasn’t easy however for Pirates, as the Natal Rich Boyz made the Soweto giants to sweat for a win. Despite creating many chances, the Durban-based team failed to capitalise on the chances created and were left to rue them at the end of the match. Bucs Sipho Mbule missed a golden opportunity in the 12 minutes, by kicking a poor ball and drawing goalkeeper Ian Otieno into a save. The first 20 minutes of the match saw both teams pressing hard, with Pirates enjoying most of the chances, but faced a stubborn Richards Bay defence.
The visitors bombarded the host with a succession of corner kicks which were played dangerously into their penalty area but however managed to survive the early onslaught without much incident.Pirates hard-man and man of the match, Mbekezeli Mbokazi, was called several times to the defence rescue, to ensure that the host don’t put the ball at the back of the net. Pirates were however rewarded on the brink of the first half, when a combination between Oswin Appolis and Moremi managed to break Richards Bay defence for Moremi to put one past a diving Otieno. The Rich Boyz Lundi Mhala missed a golden opportunity in the start of the second half, when he fired wide with a shot in front of the Buccaneers goal. Moremi also failed to double his tally, when he also miscued his shot from the edge of the box, sending it well off target 11-minutes from full-time.
The hosts were relentless towards the end of the match, applying pressure on the visitors, but however failed to level the matter to take the match to extra-time. Pirates now await the winner of the second semifinal between Lamontville Golden Arrows and Marumo Gallants that will be played at the King Goodwill Zwelithini Stadium, Durban, on Sunday afternoon.
