Royal AM will become the second side in as many weeks looking to end their horrible record against Soweto giants Orlando Pirates.
Thwihli Thwahla will host the Sea Robbers for the first time at the Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday (3pm kick-off), with ambitions to mark the occasion with a crucial win against their opponents.
The Buccaneers are coming off two high-profile victories over AmaZulu in the Nedbank Cup as well as the league, maintaining their dominance over that fixture, a trend they’ll look to continue against an inconsistent Royal AM outfit.
The two teams have met six times in all competitions since Durban businesswoman Shauwn Mkhize took over the club in 2021, with three wins going the way of Pirates, while the other three matches ended in draws.
Previous battles between the two teams have never disappointed in the way of goalmouth action, with a whopping 11 goals recorded over the last three games alone.
The first-round meeting of these two attacking forces in the DStv Premiership saw special performances from the likes of Zakhele Lepasa on the side of Pirates, while 23-year-old Hopewell Cele announced himself to the nation in the colours of Royal AM.
Thwihli Thwahla vice-captain and midfielder Kabelo Mahlasela shared his thoughts ahead of their next encounter at home.
The 33-year-old former Kaizer Chiefs man said their record against Pirates is a point of contention for them, and they have placed huge emphasis on rectifying that.
⚫️🟡 This morning at Base. pic.twitter.com/83pVwp0gKL
— RoyalAM_FC (@RAMFC_sa) April 25, 2024
“If you were to check our head-to-head with Orlando Pirates, we’ve played six and they’ve won three and drew three times, so it would be a good feeling for us to open our winning doors against Pirates at Harry Gwala,” he said.
“A game against Pirates is always an exciting one. Looking at the log standings, Pirates want to maintain (their challenge) for the second position, and we want to fight our way up – so it’s definitely going to be a good game.
“It should be a game that has a lot of goals scored because like I said, they want to keep their ambitions going at the top, and we want to push up the table as well.”
Having escaped the possibility of relegation in recent weeks, Royal AM have placed themselves in a good position to sneak into the top eight, with seven games of their season remaining.
The Pietermaritzburg side are currently 12th in the league standings, and are just three points off eighth-placed Chippa United.
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— Orlando Pirates (@orlandopirates) April 21, 2024
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On the opposite side of the coin, Pirates themselves are still in a tight contest for a place in next season’s CAF Champions League, as they sit three points behind second-placed Stellenbosch with six games to go.
The two teams will carry the burden of their respective objectives into this encounter, and are expected to duel the best way they know how, in nothing but offensive prowess.