Mamelodi Sundowns youngster Kutlwano Letlhaku stole the show on Wednesday night, scoring a brace to lead his side to a 2-0 victory over Polokwane City at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in the Betway Premiership.
This win marked sweet revenge for the Tshwane giants, who had suffered a 1-0 defeat to Rise and Shine just two weeks ago.
Mngqithi made eight changes to the starting lineup that faced Kaizer Chiefs.
Khuliso Mudau, Grant Kekana, Mothobi Mvala, Teboho Mokoena, Bathusi Aubaas, Marcelo Allende, Iqraam Rayners, and Lucas Ribeiro were replaced by Malibongwe Khoza, Lebohang Maboe, Mosa Lebusa, Thapelo Morena, Devine Lunga, Sphelele Mkhulise, Neo Maema, Kutlwano Letlhaku, and Arthur Sales.
There was a distinct lack of goal-scoring chances in the opening ten minutes with neither side managing to create clear-cut chances. The home side seemed disjointed in their attacking play, while the visitors adopted a defensive approach, looking to exploit Masandawana on the counter-attack.
Moments later, the hosts’ defence had a busy spell at the back with Phuti Mohafe’s troops advancing from their half, in search of the opening goal.
However, it was Sundowns who broke the deadlock in the 26th minute through Letlhaku whose stunning curling shot flew past the helpless Sapunga.
Polokwane, looking to avoid conceding another goal, dropped deeper into their own half, while Sundowns built up their attacks patiently.
SUNDOWNS HELD 1-0 LEAD AT HALFTIME
The match reached the interval with Bafana Ba Style leading 1-0.
Sundowns emerged from the break with a renewed sense of purpose, storming forward in search of another goal. In the 51st minute, Letlhaku came close to bagging the brace when he made a sharp turn in the box and hit the side net.
The Limpopo outfit nearly equalised moments later when Hlayisi Chauke rose unmarked to meet Thabang Matuludi’s cross. However, the striker’s header sailed wide of the goal.
In the 69th minute, Letlhaku took advantage of an error by Matuludi to score his second goal of the match, extending Sundowns’ lead to two.
After that, Polokwane City struggled to mount any significant attacks as Sundowns maintained control of the match, patiently circulating the ball to dictate the pace of the game.
STELLENBOSCH AND TS GALAXY SHARE THE SPOILS
In the other fixture of the day, Stellenbosch FC and TS Galaxy share the spoils in the match that was played under the lights of Athlone Stadium in Cape Town.
Fawaaz Basadien and Nkosikhona Radebe scored for their respective teams.
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