Pirates Edge Polokwane City To Climb Above Chiefs

Orlando Pirates moved above arch-rivals Kaizer Chiefs into third place on the Betway Premiership table after a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Polokwane City at Orlando Stadium on Wednesday night.

While the Buccaneers secured all three points, they were guilty of missing several clear chances, particularly through Evidence Makgopa and substitute Yanela Mbuthuma in the second half.

Makgopa came closest early on when his curling effort struck the post after opening up his body but failing to find the target.

The win lifts Pirates to 18 points from eight matches, just three behind log leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, with two games in hand. They are also two points behind second-placed Sekhukhune United, who have played one more game.

Head coach Abdeslam Ouaddou made several changes to his starting lineup, with one eye on the CAF Champions League second-leg clash against St. Éloi Lupopo this coming weekend. Pirates will need to overturn a 3-0 first-leg deficit suffered in Kinshasa this past weekend.

Despite resting a number of regulars, Pirates started brightly and took the lead in the sixth minute through Tshepang Moremi. The former AmaZulu winger reacted quickest after Brian Bwire spilled a shot into his path, calmly slotting home from close range.

Moremi could have doubled his tally when Patrick Maswanganyi, returning to the starting lineup, floated a clever cross to the back post, but Moremi failed to make proper contact. Moments later, Maswanganyi tried his luck from distance, unleashing a powerful shot that went narrowly wide.

At the other end, Pirates almost handed Polokwane City an equaliser after a defensive lapse. Bonginkosi Dlamini dispossessed a sluggish Lebone Seema at the back and raced through on goal, but Sipho Chaine came off his line to smother the danger brilliantly.

Makgopa — fresh from scoring in Bafana Bafana’s 3-0 victory over Rwanda that sealed South Africa’s qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup — came close again just before the hour mark, connecting well with Nkosikhona Ndaba’s cross but seeing his effort cannon off the upright.

Pirates continued to threaten, with a neat passing exchange between Oswin Appollis, Makgopa, and Moremi, but the latter’s shot went straight into the gloves of Bwire.

Late in the game, substitutes Mbuthuma and Kabelo Dlamini combined well, but Mbuthuma failed to connect cleanly with the ball when presented with a chance to seal the result.

The victory marked Pirates’ second win over Polokwane City this season, having already beaten the Limpopo outfit 2-0 in the MTN8 quarterfinals at the same venue before going on to lift the trophy for a record fourth consecutive time.