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Johannesburg - Platinum Stars made it fourth time lucky on Sunday afternoon, beating Kaizer Chiefs 5-3 on penalties to become the final team to book their place in the Telkom Knockout semi-finals.
Having lost three times already this season, the defending champions finally broke the duck and continued to fight on in the competition they won last season.
Siyabonga Mpontshane was to thank as the teams ended goalless after 120 minutes, before the goalkeeper kept out George Lebese's penalty to guide the Rustenburg outfit to the victory.
The visitors held their own in regulation time, before navigating extra-time.
Vuyo Mere opened the scoring with the afternoon's first spot-kick, before Tshabalala equalised.
Eleazar Rodgers, Mandla Masango, Mogakolodi Ngele, Kgotso Moleko and Tshepo Gumede cancelled each other out, before Mpontshane kept his cool and palmed away Lebese's shot down the middle.
Fluffed opportunity
Chiefs took some 10 minutes to get into the swing of things but eventually had Kingston Nkhatha through on goal.
The Zimbabwean attacker, though, fluffed the opportunity and blasted his effort into the side-netting when he should have been looking to score.
Nkhatha had a second bite on the half-hour mark from a tight angle. A superb chest-down and turn on the ball looked promising, the shot, however, trickled across the face of goal and just inches wide of the far post.
Stars, who were at odds to find any meaningful chances, had Ndumiso Mabena go close from a free-kick.
The winger curled a rising shot around the Chiefs wall and was denied only by Brilliant Khuzwayo's fingertip save under the crossbar.
Nkhatha began the second period well, spotting Siyabonga Mpontshane off his line nine minutes after the interval, before trying a lobbed effort over the goalkeeper, but was thwarted at the last second as Mpontshane scrambled back and tipped the shot over the bar.
Chiefs had chances for Bernard Parker and Siboniso Gaxa, before Nkhatha flashed a header high over the goal in what was Amakhosi's best prospect of the half.
Dikwena looked to struggle as Chiefs saw out the 90 minutes looking the more likely to score, but when regulation time was finally up, Stars would have felt content after weathering the storm.
Neither made any impression in the half-hour of additional time, forcing the teams to shoot it out.
