Times Of Swaziland: FANELO FIRES LEOPARD TO VICTORY

FANELO FIRES LEOPARD TO VICTORY
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BY LWAZI DLAMINI on 06/05/2021 07:52:00


MBABANE – Royal Leopard second half substitute Fanelo Tsabedze came off the
bench to fire the police side to their seventh win in a row as they overcame a
hard fighting Manzini Sea Birds by a solitary goal here yesterday.
Tsabedze, who came in three minutes before the hour-mark for below par Thabiso
Mokenkoane, fired home from the edge of the box a low show which hit the foot of
the post on its way into the net, leaving Sea Birds goalkeeper Bafana Ngwenya
sprawled helplessly on the turf.
Powerless
Ngwenya had kept the Manzini side in the game with a series of daring saves, but
was powerless in stopping the treacherous shot which condemned the Gcina
Dlamini-led side to their second successive loss and saw them drop one place on
the log standings to position six. It was a hard fought victory for the police
side who maintained the pressure on log leaders, Young Buffaloes, who trashed
Mhlume Peacemakers 4-0 at Tambankulu Stadium yesterday, where towering striker
Phiwa Dlamini became the first scorer of a hat-trick in this enthralling
2020/2021 season.
Edwin Matsebula’s charges remain two points behind Buffaloes with a game in
hand after yesterday’s seventh victory in a row. It was a game of two halves
with Sea Birds creating a number of chances in the first half and Leopard piling
the pressure in the second half. Thabiso Mokenkoane could have given ‘Ingwe
Mabalabala’ the lead in the 49th minute, but his glancing header from a Melusi
Mkhwanazi cross went inches wide.
Save
Sea Birds goalkeeper, Bafana Ngwenya pulled off a great save in the 52nd minute
when he blocked a pint-blank Junior Magagula shot inside the box. Again, in the
72nd minute, Ngwenya made another good save, denying Muzi ‘Mzoro’ Dlamini
his sixth goal of the campaign from close range. However, he could not do
anything to stop Fanelo Tsabedze blistering shot seven minutes later as it hit
the post, nestling at the far right corner of the net to keep Leopard in the
hunt for the E350 000 first round ‘carrot’.