Highlands Park through to the semi-finals of MTN 8
The home team proved all the prophets of doom wrong and managed to qualify for the next stage
New Highlands Park signing Wayde Jooste scored the all-important goal that sent the Soweto giants, Orlando Pirates, packing and out of the MTN 8 competition.
Played before a packed Orlando Stadium, the home team gave their coach Owen da Gama the best birthday present ever by advancing to the semi-finals of this lucrative competition.
Coach da Gama celebrated his 58th birthday on Saturday, the same day his troops went to war against a formidable side.
Before this clash, soccer pundits had ruled out Highlands Park’s chances of beating the Buccaneers, arguing that the ‘Lions of the North’ were out of form and lacked that killer instinct.
But the home team proved all the prophets of doom wrong and managed to qualify for the next stage of the competition. Highland Park’s goal against Pirates came from a cross delivered by Peter Shalulile in the dying stages of the game.
Da Gama said: “It is always a good feeling to achieve such a feat over a team such as Pirates. I want to applaud my boys for the manner in which they handled themselves,” he said.
The home team will now turn their focus on the league, where they have back-to-back tricky dates with Black Leopards in Thohoyandou on Saturday and Amazulu on Tuesday at the Makhulong Stadium.
Also follow us on:
