Gavin Hunt’s championship contenders, Wits, were looking for a win to stay in the title race with hitherto log-leaders Mamelodi Sundowns and they made their intentions clear from the outset.
Their young prospect Phakamani Mahlambi combined well with debutant James Keene and Daine Klate in a build-up movement before he struck the opening goal in the seventh minute.
The ‘Chilli Boys’ staged an excellent fightback midway through the first half as their pressure stretched the Wits’ defence but goalkeeper Moeneeb ‘Slimkat’ Josephs stood firm between the sticks when Aristide Bancé, Chipp’s Burkinabé import, threatened in quick succession with scoring attempts.
Wits’ slender 1-0 lead survived by the time the halftime whistle sounded.
There were first-half yellow cards for Chippa’s James Okwuosa (44th minute) and the SuperSport pair Thulani Hlatshwayo (20th) and Josephs (40).
Second-half play was hardly underway when SuperSport took a 2-0 lead courtesy of a Keene goal in the 47th minute, with classy Klate again contributing in the build-up work.
There was some cheer for the home fans when Chippa’s Nkosinathi Mthiyane pulled back one goal five minutes later and from that point onwards the game’s tempo picked up appreciably.
However, Wits always looked the more threatening and 15 minutes from the end Ben Motshwari scored his first goal of the season to reopen a two-goal lead for the Gauteng visitors.
This time there was no comeback from the ‘Chilli Boys’, although they failed to pull the trigger when scoring chances beckoned in the closing stages of the match.
Source: African News Agency (ANA)
