Mbuyane sinks CosmosSat, 29 Aug 2009 23:03
Thulasizwe Mbuyane scored the first hat-trick of the 2009/10 Absa Premiership season as Orlando Pirates extended their lead at the head of the table with a 4-0 thrashing of Jomo Cosmos at the Orlando Stadium.
New signing Terror Fanteni also got on the score sheet as the Buccaneers moved to ten points from four games and extended their lead to three points.
Pirates should have opened the scoring in just the second minute. Teko Modise fired in a low shot that was only half stopped by goalkeeper Avril Phali and Thulasizwe Mbuyane explicably failed to put the ball home on the goal line and instead allowed it to wrong-foot him after bouncing back off the upright.
But the former Free State Stars attacker made up for his error on 13 minutes when he leapt to meet Katlego Mashego’s corner kick at the near post and scored a terrific glancing header past Phali to make it 1-0 to the Buccaneers.
On 33 minutes they almost doubled their lead, with Ezenkosi needing captain Phali to make a fine save to keep out Mashego’s 20-metre shot that looked destine for the top corner of the net.
In the last few minutes of the first half Cosmos finally began to offer something of a goal threat, though it was to no avail. Moeneeb Josephs made his first genuine save when he had to move sharply to his right to catch Bamuza Sono’s long range effort and Rooi Mahamutsa made a terrific block to thwart Koena Mathopa a short while later.
Pirates started the second half much as the first and duly extended their lead in the 51st minute. Mashego tried his luck with a long range grass-cutter that Phail could only palm back into the danger area. Mbuyane gleefully ran onto the loose ball and shot into an empty net to make it 2-0.
Ten minutes later Pirates made it 3-0. Dikgang Mabalane exchanged passes with Andile Jali before whipping in a good low cross from the right wing. Sniffing the chance for a treble of goals, Mbuyane got ahead of Thapelo Tshilo and swept home the ball to complete the season’s first hat-trick.
Substitute Terror Fanteni put the icing on the cake when he took advantage of confusion in the Cosmos penalty area to score from close range in the 87th minute, his first goal since signing for the Soweto giants.
The teams:
Orlando Pirates: Josephs, Jele, Mahamutsa, Thwala, Lekgwathi, Mabalane (Masina 81), Mhlongo, Jali, Modise, Mbuyane (Fanteni 76), Mashego (Kamwendo 77).
Jomo Cosmos: Phali, Mhlathe (Cohen 58), Tshilo, Moloto, Oluwafemi, Diarra, Modabi (Bucuane 57), Theletsane (Mongale 58), Sono, Samb, Mathopa.
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source: http://sport.iafrica.com/sasoccer/news/breaking/1893200.htm
