JOHANNESBURG - EC Bees and especially Acornbush FC will feel they are the true representatives of their provinces, flying the flag in the Nedbank Cup on Sunday. These two amateur sides will also be driven by the desire to add another giant-killing story the tournament is famous for.
Bees host Orlando Pirates on Sunday at Sisa Dukashe Stadium in East London, just over 60km from their base in Bisho. But they can argue to be more at home than the club that currently use that venue in the Premier Division - Chippa United.
That’s because the Chilli Boys relocated from Cape Town to the Eastern Cape, the birth place of their owner, Chippa Mpengesi. Bees will look to sting a struggling Pirates team searching for their first win under coach Kjell Jonevret.
The Swedish coach has led the club to three successive draws that stretched their winless streak to 12 matches.
“For me the cup has always been an important thing. I have won it seven to eight times as a player and a coach. It is the ‘easiest’ way to get something out of a season,” Jonevret said. “If you are lucky with the draws, then you can play maybe two teams from the same league as you. It’s pretty ‘easy’ but that makes it hard.”
The Buccaneers will not take the third-tier side lightly because they have already been eliminated by a lower league team before. Maluti FET College produced arguably the biggest upset in the tournament’s history by thumping Pirates 4-1.
That victory was bigger than amateur side Baroka FC beating Kaizer Chiefs and Moroka Swallows en-route to reaching the semi-final in 2011.
It was bigger than first division sides FC Cape Town and University of Pretoria eliminating Amakhosi in this tournament in 2010 and 2009.
Bees’ squad has players who have played in the Premier Division, including Siyabulela Shai. Former Chiefs defender Mokete Tsotetsi is the club’s assistant coach. They go into this match with nothing to lose against a Pirates team that have everything to lose, including their confidence in what has been a dreadful season so far.
Acornbush of Mpumalanga will be looking to upset Absa Premiership leaders Cape Town City at Kabokweni Stadium in Mbombela. The amateur side and Mbombela United in the first division carry Mpumalanga’s hopes of seeing Premier Division football return to the province.
Mpumalanga Black Aces were a club from the region in name only. They were based in Joburg and returned 'home' to play their matches.
A number of players from the now defunct AmaZayoni will be in action against Acornbush, including the sensational Lebogang Manyama, who was part of the players who relocated to the Mother City after Cape Town City bought Aces’ status. That decision didn’t hurt the people of Mbombela too much as Aces were a pseudo-Mpumalanga club.
In Acornbush, they have a club from the region, more specifically, the Lowveld. The Mpumalanga ABC Motsepe League champions-in-waiting have former Aces striker Madoda Motha in their squad.