Cape Town - SuperSport
United and Orlando Pirates will battle for a place in the final of the Telkom
Knockout when they meet in the second semi-final, set for Mbombela Stadium on Saturday.
SuperSport have
made their way into the last four thanks to a 1-0 win over Ajax Cape Town and a
penalty shootout triumph against outgoing TKO champions and cross-town rivals
Mameloldi Sundowns in the last 16 and quarter-finals respectively.
Matsatsantsa
are looking to qualify for a second final in the space of two years, having won
their first and only Telkom Knockout title in 2014.
As for Pirates,
they overcame both Golden Arrows and Highlands Park 2-1 in the last 16 and
quarter-finals respectively.
The Buccaneers are looking to return to the final
for the first time since a 2-1 loss to Platinum Stars in the 2013 edition.
Their one and only TKO triumph arrived in 2011.
This will be
the teams’ 20th cup meeting. The previous 19 have seen Pirates claim
nine wins to SuperSport’s five (plus two wins on penalties for each team), but
Matsatsantsa have won their last three successive knockout matches against
Pirates, including a 3-2 triumph in the final of last season’s Nedbank Cup.
United also
scarred the current Bucs side by handing them a stunning 6-1 whipping at the
start of the month in a league clash: it equalled Pirates’ heaviest-ever defeat
and saw the end of Muhsin Ertugral’s brief reign as coach.
In all,
SuperSport and Pirates have crossed swords in 70 league and cup matches - the
Soweto giants have recorded 31 wins and scored 95 goals compared to 22 wins and
74 goals for the Tshwane side.
In terms of current form, United come into the
match on the back of two successive 1-1 draws, the most recent of which came
away to Kaizer Chiefs in a league clash on Wednesday, while Bucs have won three
successive matches since their humbling at the hands of Matsatsantsa.
Kick-off is at 18h00.