Sundowns And Pirates Share Spoils In Thrilling Draw

Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates played out a 1–1 draw in a sold-out Betway Premiership clash at Loftus Stadium on Saturday — a match that will be remembered for a stunning strike from 20-year-old Camren Dansin.

Sundowns took the lead through Peter Shalulile, but the Buccaneers hit back with a spectacular equaliser. Dansin caught the ball sweetly on the volley from the edge of the box, his strike dipping and crashing off the underside of the crossbar before nestling in the net — a goal-of-the-season contender.

The draw between two of the most successful sides in South African football sees Sundowns remain top of the table with 22 points from 11 matches, three ahead of Pirates, who moved up to third with 19 points from nine games.

Kaizer Chiefs, who beat Durban City on Friday, dropped to fourth on goal difference, though they are level on points with Pirates.

Pirates are still searching for their first league victory over Sundowns in Pretoria since 2018. However, they have beaten the Brazilians twice in recent cup fixtures — including the MTN8 semi-final second leg in August, which they won on penalties. Pirates went on to lift the trophy for the second consecutive year.

The last time the two sides met at Loftus in the league, Sundowns ran out 4–1 winners.

Sundowns went into this encounter without star midfielder Teboho Mokoena, who was serving a suspension.

Pirates coach Abdelsam Ouaddou showed great faith in youth, starting 20-year-old Dansin alongside Masindi Nemtajela and Sihle Nduli in midfield.

The Soweto giants, coming into the match on a six-game winning streak, started brightly and created several half-chances. But Sundowns struck first — Tshepang Moremi was dispossessed by Keanu Cupido deep in his own half, and Nuno Santos had time and space to set up Shalulile, who scored from an Arthur Sales assist in the 20th minute after his initial effort was saved by Sipho Chaine.

That goal marked Shalulile’s 133rd career strike.

Pirates, however, refused to back down. The faith Ouaddou placed in Dansin was rewarded when the youngster volleyed home from the edge of the box in the 35th minute to score his first senior goal in spectacular fashion. Sundowns failed to clear a corner, and the loose ball fell to Dansin, who unleashed a thunderous left-footed strike that left Ronwen Williams rooted to the spot.

Just before halftime, Pirates had a golden opportunity to take the lead when Sihle Nduli floated a ball behind the Sundowns defence, but Deon Hotto’s volley flew high and wide. The Buccaneers were the better side going into the break with the scores level.

Five minutes into the second half, Pirates continued to dominate. Lebone Seema carried the ball from his own half and combined superbly with Nemtajela, whose flick sent Seema through on goal — but Williams denied him with a sharp save at the near post.

Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso was visibly frustrated as his side struggled to control the midfield battle, eventually substituting Sales for Jayden Adams in the 56th minute.

Despite the change, Pirates continued to press high and dictate play, clearly exploiting the absence of Mokoena — a key figure in Sundowns’ midfield who usually dictates tempo and poses a long-range threat.

Oswin Appollis later won possession and set up Moremi, but his weak shot was easily gathered by Williams.

While the result wasn’t the birthday gift Ouaddou would have wanted — the Pirates coach turned 47 on Saturday — his side will take the point with satisfaction, especially as they still have two games in hand.