Mamelodi Sundowns (1) 3
Kekana 41st minute, Vilakazi 47th minute, Themba Zwane 73rd minute
Golden Arrows (0) 0
Loftus Versfeld - Mamelodi Sundowns’ class and quality proved too much for Golden Arrows as the defending league and reigning African champions secured a 3-0 victory as they steadily make their way up the league table.
It was vintage Sundowns as they controlled proceedings with their sleek passing and purposeful running from their forwards with Anthony Laffor, Percy Tau and Themba Zwane being at the heart of their attacks.
The tireless toil of the trio upfront applied constant pressure on an Arrows defence that was creaky at best and was holding on by the skin of their teeth.
Laffor was menacing with his timely runs into the box and kept the defence guessing with his ability to pop up on either side of the field and it was his deft and defence splitting passes that first planted the seed of doubt in the shaky Arrows defence.
The uncertainty within the Arrows ranks was further entrenched by the speed Tau showed on the right wing while Zwane’s presence in the centre of the attack added to the options that Sundowns had at their disposal.
The fluency in the Sundowns passing game was further aided by the short shower of rain that fell on the lush Loftus turf and with their adversaries firmly pinned deep in their half, it was only a matter of time before the dam wall burst.
And when Sundowns’ siege of the Arrows goal-line eventually paid dividends it was through another spectacular goal from captain Hlompho Kekana in the 41st minute.
Kekana had earned his side a corner after his goal bound long range effort was parried over the crossbar by Arrows goalkeeper Maxamilian Mbaeva but from the resultant corner Kekana’s deft touch with the outside of his right boot opened the scoring for the hosts.
Kekana’s goal was the spark that the home side needed and it seemed to inject life in their fatigued bodies from a demanding campaign in the African Champions League.
With every charge forward from Sundowns, Arrows were evidently living on borrowed time and on the cusp of the half-time interval they almost conceded a second goal as Sibusiso Vilakazi’s goal bound shot was intercepted by a desperate lunge from an Arrows defender.
The one way traffic from the home side continued in earnest in the second half as Vilakazi was the lucky recipient of the ball coming off him from a Tebogo Langerman shot and the all-conquering champions were able to open up some breathing space between themselves and their inept opponents.
The total dominance of Sundowns was epitomized by their third goal as they easily dispossessed Arrows in the middle of the park before Tau went on yet another run down the left hand side of the field before putting in a well-timed cross for Zwane to tap in.
The victory for the defending champions was their second in five days after their 2-1 win against Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday at the same venue and it is a win that catapulted them to mid table having played only half the number of games as the rest of the teams in the league.
Arrows, on the other hand, missed a golden opportunity to go joint top of the table with rookies Cape Town City but will fortunately remain amongst the frontrunners and in the top four sides so far in the league.
@extrastrongsa
Independent Media