Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso acknowledged that their path to the league title is now entirely in their own hands after Orlando Pirates unexpectedly lost to Sekhukhune United at Orlando Stadium on Wednesday.

While Pirates, who had hoped to close the gap on Sundowns, stumbled, Sundowns secured a comfortable 3-0 victory over relegation-threatened Richards Bay at Loftus Stadium.

This win extended their lead at the top of the Betway Premiership table to 12 points, having played two more matches than Pirates.

Unlike Pirates, Sundowns have five league matches remaining this season, but their destiny to claim an unprecedented eighth consecutive league title is now firmly within their grasp.

“No, I didn’t know,” Cardoso responded when asked if he was aware of Pirates’ defeat, his tone indicating genuine surprise.

“As you can see from my voice, because I didn’t know.”  

He continued, “Obviously, it will depend on us. There are still five games to play, and nothing is settled yet. For sure, our opponents will not give up, and we need to keep earning points.”

“Obviously when we can enlarge the advantage, it gives us more comfort. But it doesn’t take anything away from what we should do. We have five tough matches to play. 

“The next one is already away in Cape Town [at DHL Stadium on Saturday at 20:00]; with Cape Town City there is a team that is fighting and has its own objectives. 

“We should respect ourselves, we should respect the opponent, respect the opposition – not sleep on what we did. When you sleep on what you did, then you have problems. 

“We played one more game today [on Wednesday], five more games to go. If we got extra advantage, fantastic. 

“But it something we should manage. It’s to keep on going, we need to win our matches. 

“I will not give rest to my players. They need to push themselves. This championship is tough; there is still a lot to go.  

“Let’s everything that is going to happen, but we have in the next six weeks, the five remaining games.”

Two Sundowns’ goals came from their South American contingent. Brazilian Arthur Sales opened the scoring in the eighth minute after a brilliant pass from Teboho Mokoena.

Bafana Bafana international Iqraam Rayners added the second with a flick in the 28th minute, and Chilean Marcello Allende completed the scoring in the 48th minute.

This dominant performance showcased the strength of the African Giants, who also reached the CAF Champions League final on Friday against Al Ahly.

Sundowns have now defeated Richards Bay in their last eight encounters across all competitions, scoring 17 goals while conceding only two.