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Cape Town - The Mother City will be divided this weekend as Ajax Cape Town host Cape Town City in the Cape derby on Saturday afternoon.
It will only be the third time the two sides will meet after City owner John Comitis bought the rights of Mpumalanga Black Aces and subsequently relocated and renamed the club last year.
Since then, City claimed a third place finish in the Absa Premiership last season and enjoyed their first taste of silverware after edging SuperSport United in the Telkom Knockout final.
However, with Eric Tinkler (former head coach) moving north to permanently mentor Matsatsantsa, Comitis took a gamble on Bafana Bafana legend Benni McCarthy.
In his first season as a head coach, the 39-year-old could not have asked for a better start to life at the Citizens.
McCarthy has guided Cape Town City to three victories in the league and has a MTN8 final against Matsatsantsa early next month (Saturday, October 7) at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.
For now, Cape Town's prodigal son has a derby to worry about and the former striker is ready to build on the momentum his charges has built so far.
"All derbies are special, as we are playing for bragging rights in the city," McCarthy said.
"Ajax have come a long way, they have a wealth of history. But even though we’re only two years old, we are showing that we are a club that means business.
"And for us to continue in that spirit, we have to ensure that we claim those bragging rights of the city.
"So yes, it's a three-point game, but derbies are special."
McCarthy says that his charges are hungry for a victory as most of the players are originally from Cape Town.
"A lot of the players in our team are from Cape Town, so they have family and friends here, and you want to be able to walk in your city and make those people proud," McCarthy continued.
"I'm Capetonian and on the blue and gold side now, so for me it’s also about wanting to be on top of the hunting pack. We’re in a good position in the league, and we want to continue that.
"We want to achieve things with this club, so starting with the derby on Saturday, we want to have those bragging rights."
Kick-off is at 15:00.
