WHO’S HOT
Foster came off the bench to score a dramatic 95th-minute winner for Burnley in a 3-2 win at fellow strugglers Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League on Sunday, a goal that could prove worth more than just three points. It’s a second win in a row for Burnley and a major confidence boost as they pull five points clear of the relegation zone. It’s also the first time they have won back-to-back top-flight matches since 2002. Foster has not been prolific in his time at Turf Moor but remains an important part of their attacking setup and has goals in his game. With an Africa Cup of Nations and World Cup on the horizon for the 25-year-old, his goal could not have come at a better time.
Chiefs finally found their scoring touch in defeating DR Congo side Simba to reach the group stages of the CAF Confederation Cup. It was a comprehensive 3-1 win that ended a barren run of three games without a goal (all 0-0 draws). They are into the pool stages of this competition for the first time, a result that adds to the feel-good factor around the Soweto giants, who have been in the doldrums for several seasons.
The striker has been ignored by Bafana Bafana coach Hugo Broos of late, but just how long that continues remains to be seen after another sterling performance for Moroccan side Wydad Casablanca at the weekend as they qualified for the group stages of the CAF Confederation Cup. Lorch was Wydad’s best player at the FIFA Club World Cup earlier this year, and while he has had off-field issues in the past, seems to have put those behind him and is in the form of his life.
Abafana Bes’thende don’t often reach cup semi-finals, but their 2-1 extra-time victory over TS Galaxy in the Carling Knockout keeps them in the hunt for a first piece of silverware since lifting the MTN8 in 2009. It is another feather in the cap for coach Manqoba Mngqithi, who has the team firing over the last few weeks. The coach, who was also in charge when they won that title 16 years ago, will hope for a repeat on his return to the club.
In a week when he was nominated for Major League Soccer Coach of the Year, Carnell will breathe a sigh of relief after his Philadelphia United side let a late lead slip and needed penalties to win the first tie in their play-off series against Chicago Fire. United led 2-0 in the 84th minute but allowed Fire to level the game before winning the shoot-out 4-2 ahead of the second match in Chicago on Saturday.
WHO’S NOT
They won the battle but lost the war as Pirates did the hard yards in coming from 3-0 down in their CAF Champions League tie to beat St. Eloi Lupopo from DR Congo by the same scoreline in the second leg and force the tie into penalties. That’s where it fell apart, as they lost 5-4 and embarrassingly exited before the group stages. It’s a blow to their reputation, and their bank balance, that is hard to explain.
Bafana Bafana are crying out for a playmaker in the number 10 role with Themba Zwane’s injury making him a doubt for AFCON. Maswanganyi is battling with Pirates teammate Sipho Mbule for that position, and the game against St. Eloi Lupopo was his chance to shine. But he was poor and has blown too hot and cold this season. On his day, he is fantastic, but those days have dwindled of late, and he needs to turn his form around.
With Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs already out of the competition, Durban City would have targeted the Carling Knockout as a great chance to lift silverware, especially with a tricky but winnable quarter-final away at Richards Bay. They ended up losing 3-1, though, in a performance below the standards they have set this season, a wasted opportunity for the club to make an immediate impact in their first season in the topflight.
Stars missed out on promotion to the Betway Premiership last season when they fell at the play-off stage and had made an unbeaten start to the new Motsepe Foundation Championship campaign before a 1-0 loss to Highbury on Saturday. It means the last unbeaten record in the second tier is gone, and Stars have been knocked off top spot in the table by Milford FC. Only the top team in the division earns automatic promotion.