Pirates unlikely to get Champions League spot after recent poor run and City loss

Having drawn their last three games, the Buccaneers went into Sunday afternoon’s game against Cape Town City looking for their first win since the return of football.

And it looked like they could get as they started well and had a one-man advantage just 30 minutes into the match when former player Mpho Makola received his marching orders after getting his second booking of the afternoon.

Josef Zinnbauer’s team were good in attack earlier on and could have opened the scoring 10 minutes into the game but Tshegofatso Mabasa’s first touch let him down and couldn’t capitalise on the chance.

City came close to scoring in the 15th minute but Happy Jele managed to head the ball out of danger line on his own goal line.

The Citizens were reduced to 10 men in the 32nd minute when Makola received his second yellows card and subsequently his marching orders. He had received his first yellow card three minutes into the match.

The goal finally came two minutes into the referees’ optional time at the end of the first half. Kermit Erasmus headed in unmarked inside the Bucs’ box from a cross on the right.

Pirates started the second half well, pinning City back but just couldn’t find a way through their defence. Realizing that the Citizens had the back door closed, Vincent Pule tried with a long-range effort and got it right but found Peter Leeuwenburgh alert to the danger and the keeper tipped the effort wide.

The Buccaneers were awarded a penalty in the 62nd minute but the referee, Phelelani Ndaba changed his decision after consulting with his assistant.

Erasmus came close to doubling the lead in the 64th minute when he was set on goal with just the keeper to beat, but Wayne Sandilands came quickly off his like and averted the danger.

Four minutes later, he found the back of the best but was ruled to have been offside when he scored as City pounced on a counter-attack.

Leeuwenburgh denied the Buccaneers with some sterling saves towards the end of the match as their visitors at Loftus Versveld bombarded them looking for at least a point out of the match. But it was not to be for the Buccaneers who remain fifth with three games to the end.

City meanwhile jumped to seventh and look to have finally found their rhythm after a heavy start to the season that saw them languishing at the bottom end of the standings for the first time since their establishment three years ago.