Johannesburg - The premier of Gauteng’s excitement that the Nedbank Cup will be held in his province knew no bounds this week, following the announcement the ultimate club knock-out match in South Africa is to be played at Loftus Versfeld.
Panyaza Lesufi said they’d been lobbying hard to ensure Gauteng got to host the big match even before the first ball of the competition was kicked. His delight also has to do with the fact that there will be a Gauteng team in the final – with either of Soweto giants, Kaizer Chiefs or Orlando Pirates, set to contest the May 27 match with the winner of tomorrow’s tie between Stellenboscsh FC and Sekhukhune United.
The man renowned for his affinity for the other Soweto outfit, Swallows FC, would not say which, between Amakhosi and the Buccaneers, he’d love to see trotting on to the pitch at the Pretoria rugby arena.
A cynical football fan, though, would have read the premier’s actions this week to mean he will be rooting for Chiefs at this afternoon’s clash at the FNB Stadium. Lesufi honoured their pre-match media conference at Naturena on Tuesday, and while he promised to be at the Rand Stadium for Pirates’ one the following day, he sent a representative instead.
Not that either club would have read anything into that, although Arthur Zwane might have appeared a little more comfortable dealing with the media corps that packed the auditorium at Naturena sans the high-ranking official.
At least not so soon after he had lost another Soweto derby to
Swallows FC, the club the popular politician played a huge role in resurrecting following their relegation to the amateur division.
Lesufi joked he had asked the Chiefs coach if he had forgiven him for what happened on May Day in Polokwane: “He has confirmed he has (forgiven me),” Lesufi chuckled.
If Zwane has forgiven Lesufi’s Swallows, he should know only too well that his opposite number at Pirates, Jose Riveiro, and all associated with the Buccaneers, still hold a grudge that they will be out to exact revenge for this afternoon.
The Buccaneers and The Ghost are still smarting from the two league defeats that Zwane and Chiefs inflicted, and nothing will make them feel better than ensuring Chiefs’ season ends in the misery of failing to earn a ticket to continental football.
It thus makes for an intriguing encounter that Zwane will not need to motivate his charges for, the stakes being as high as they are for the one-time Glamour Boys of Soweto who are looking for their first piece of major silverware since 2015.
Who of the two will earn the ticket to Loftus later this month will be known a little before 5pm today, if not sometime thereafter, should the match go into extra time.
Lesufi will be among the capacity crowd at the FNB Stadium, but as to who he will be cheering for, the jury is still out – notwithstanding the fact that his actions this week suggest he will be for the gold and black.
@Tshiliboy