Black Aces’s defence crumbles

Two first-half goals by Mandla Masango and Reneilwe Letsholonyane secured maximum points for Chiefs as they move to second position on the Premiership table.

Played before a relatively bigger crowd than anticipated earlier, this midweek encounter at Mbombela Stadium saw Chiefs dictating matters from the first whistle. It came as no surprise when Masango opened their account in the 11th minute of play, after a defensive error by Aces.

Minutes later Kingston Nkatha almost doubled the lead for Chiefs who increased pressure on Aces, but his effort was denied by a cross bar.

In seeking to reply quickly, the home team pushed Collins Mbesuma and Abia Nale in deep and this proved a good move because they put pressure on Chiefs whose defence line started to show cracks. It was however rescued by keeper Itumeleng Khune, who produced a number of stunning saves.

In the 41st minute, out of nowhere, Aces stroke through Aubrey Ngoma to level matters with a cracker of a goal that left Khune seeing stars. 

Ngoma’s celebration was short-lived though. Letsholonyane replied with his own impressive goal to give Amakhosi a 2-1 hard-fought victory.

The second half was actually the repeat of the first stanza, with Chiefs dominating and always looking dangerous whenever going forward.

They could have easily won the match with more than two goals had it not been for the wasted scoring opportunities, especially by George Maluleke who missed more than three golden sitters. Aces’ confidence grew in the dying minutes of the game. They looked threatening and could have equalised, but Chiefs’ number produced stunning saves which saw him bag the man of the match.

Read the full article in today’s Lowvelder.