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Vasco drew first blood in the shape of Jerome Ramatlhakwana and Sibusiso Zuma, but Swallows replied with goals from Cheikh Cisse, Siyabonga Nomvethe and Bradley Ritson.
Coming into this game, Swallows still found themselves in 15th position with 22 points, three points adrift of 14th placed Maritzburg United and five points adrift of Vasco da Gama.
The result means Swallows have narrowed the gap between themselves and Maritzburg, who played to a 1-1 draw with Bidvest Wits on Friday night, to one point and Vasco to two.
Prior to this encounter, Swallows had won two of their last five matches while Vasco failed to register a single victory in their last six games, and as a result, both sides needed nothing else but a victory, but it was the Coastal side who choked in the capital, suffering a defeat which saw their dream turn into a nightmare.
Playing at home, Swallows were in a mean mood but Vasco were not mere spectators, as they also made inroads searching for goals, but their strikers failed to convert chances created.
Despite the rainy weather, both Swallows and Vasco played enterprising football the first half as they went all out in search of a win and their coaches must have been devastated with their strikers, who seemed to be in a generous mood by missing scoring chances.
Vasco opened the scoring when when Jerome Ramatlhakwana rocked the net in the 14th minute.
After the goal, the Cape side adopted a more defensive approach, but that did not stop Swallows from launching one attack after the other.
However, it was Vasco who increased their tally to two. The goal was a result of a penalty scored by Sibusiso Zuma in the 30th minute after Giorgi Nergazde was adjudged to have fouled Zuma inside the Swallows danger area.
The two goals did not instil fear among the Swallows players, and they were finally rewarded when Cheikh Cisse profited from a Siyabonga Nomvethe cross before beating Postnet Omony with a fine header.
The half time score was 2-1 to Vasco da Gama.
After the break, Swallows never gave up fighting, and in the 66th minute they earned themselves a penalty after Angelo Julius handled the ball inside the Vasco 18-year area; the referee didn’t hesitate in awarding a penalty which was converted by Siyabonga Nomvethe in the 68th minute to level matters for his team.
Vasco’s defence was caught sleeping in the 81st when Nomvethe zoomed past a few defenders, before crossing to Bradley Ritson, who beat Postnet Omony with a bullet-like shot to seal the game for Swallows.
Moroka Swallows (1) 3 (Cisse 34’, Nomvethe 68’ pen, Ritson 81’)
Vasco da Gama (2) 2 (Ramathlakwana 14’, Zuma 30’ pen)
Teams:
Swallows: (4-4-2) Etafia; Mere, Mphahlele, Nergadze, Mayinga; Mmotong (Leonard 65’), Tsutsulupa, Sibaya (Ritson 55’), Ritchie (Machapa 37’); Nomvethe, Cisse
Vasco: (4-4-2) Omony; Isaacs, Adams, Tsotetsi, Jenniker; Karkee, Moloi (Julius 59’), Alexander, Kamwendo (Hendricks 76’); Zuma, Ramathlakwana (Walaza 79’)
