Cape Town - There was no separating SuperSport United and Golden Arrows as they played to an entertaining 0-0 draw at the Mbombela Stadium on Tuesday evening.
Arrows came flying out of the starting blocks and created two chances in quick succession as Ntsako Makhubela fired straight at SuperSport keeper Ronwen Williams, who was called into action again two minutes later to keep out Seth Parusnath's long-range effort.
SuperSport hit back a few minutes later as Thamsanqa Gabuza's driven effort forced a fingertip save from Arrows keeper Edmore Sibanda, before Dean Furman fired just wide of the left-hand upright from outside the box.
And the two teams continued to trade blows as Arrows forged two more opportunities, Danny Phiri shooting wide after being teed up by Parusnath, while Siyabonga Dube also failed to hit the target for the visitors.
However, Arrows were let off the hook on the 20-minute mark as a well worked team move ended with Evans Rusike somehow failing to hit the target when well placed to score.
SuperSport continued to threaten but a lack of cutting edge in front of goal let them down on more than one occasion, with Jamie Webber dragging a shot wide before seeing a powerful long-range effort kept out by Sibanda.
While the first stanza had offered up plenty of goal-scoring chances, the same cannot be said of the second half.
Chances were at a premium at both ends of the pitch, with the two teams showcasing their defensive abilities.
A rare chance presented itself in the 52nd minute as SuperSport whipped in a cross from out wide, but it came to nothing as Gabuza headed over the bar.
Arrows eventually lodged a shot on goal with roughly ten minutes remaining as substitute Danny Venter's shot forcing Williams into making a fingertip save, deflecting the ball onto the woodwork.
And Venter was proving to be a real thorn in the side of the SuperSport defence as he again forced Williams into making a save a few minutes later.
However, with neither side able to find the all-important breakthrough, the match would end with the scoreline still goalless.