CAPE TOWN - Ghanaian goalkeeper Richard Ofori has had a fantastic season for Maritzburg United and will take his place between the sticks for Saturday’s Nedbank Cup final against Free State Stars at the Cape Town Stadium.
Over at Stars, though, there had been a question mark as to whether Thela Ngobeni or Ivorian Badra Ali Sangare will wear the number one jersey in the final.
But, at a press conference held at the Waterfront in Cape Town on Thursday, the Free State club’s assistant-coach Selaotse “Sly” Mosala confirmed that Ngobeni will be in goal.
“Sangara has been doing very well for us in the league,” explained Mosala. “But when we signed Ngobeni on loan from Sundowns we didn’t want him to just be on the bench.
"So we used him in the cup competitions and you have seen that his performances won some games for us. So, on Saturday, we will go with Ngobeni because he has been the one who has been doing the job for us in the cup competition.”
As for Ofori, Maritzburg assistant-coach Maahier Davids was fulsome in his praise for the influential Ghanaian.
“Ofori has been Ghana’s number one goalkeeper, so it was a huge scoop when we got him at Maritzburg,” said Davids. “He has been among the top three keepers in the PSL this season.
"He is only 24 years old, but he brings great leadership to the team and his international experience has brought a confidence not just to the defence but to the entire team. We hope he can keep on producing the same good performances for us.”