United triumph after extra time

Two goals during extra time secured victory for SuperSport United in their Nedbank Cup clash against Golden Arrows.

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Pretoria - SuperSport United defeated Golden Arrows 3-1 after extra time at Loftus on Wednesday night to reach the last 16 of the Nedbank Cup.

With the scores deadlocked at 1-1 after regulation time, Arrows found two more strikes in the additional 30 minutes through substitute striker Dipsy Selolwane in the 98th minute and fellow marksman Anthony Laffor in the 119th minute.

United had taken the lead through Kermit Erasmus in the 28th minute after he was afforded space by the Arrows defence to manoeuvre a shot in with his favoured left foot.

The visitors equalised eight minutes later from a penalty converted by midfielder Ntlantla Zothwane after United defender Morgan Gould fouled striker Njabulo Manqana in the box.

United would have been relieved with the result, having been knocked out at this stage of the competition for the last two years in succession.

The league champions, who are floundering in the bottom half of the table, would also be pleased with a confidence booster ahead of their African Champions League match against Egyptian giants Al Ahly in Cairo next week.

United coach Gavin Hunt opted for an offensive approach, playing Glen Salmon, Laffor and Erasmus up front even though the injury-prone Salmon was replaced by Fikru Tefera before the first half concluded.

It was the nimble Erasmus who got the first real chance midway through the first half, but his effort went narrowly over the post.

The young Bafana Bafana player could have walked away with a hat-trick in the second half when first his volley rebounded off the woodwork, and moments later his long range shot was saved by Arrows goalkeeper Siphamandla Ntombela.

While Ntombela grew in stature and confidence throughout the match, before being replaced at the start of extra-time by Thulasizwe Khuzwayo after hurting his leg, he was guilty of a few blunders in the first half.

An clearance from his opposite number, Rowen Fernandez, saw a badly out of position Ntombela needing to back paddle and stick out a fortunate hand that tipped the ball on to the crossbar to save an embarrassing moment that would have seen United stretch their lead.

United seemed to feel they could take advantage of the inexperienced keeper, with a direct free kick from Laffor going narrowly wide and a short range shot from Tefera going over the bar.

It was not Arrows' best performance on the night, with Philani Shange and Njabulo Manqana failing to spark, and the visitors clearly missed the presence of the suspended Collins Mbesuma up front. - Sapa

Source: http://www.iol.co.za/united-triumph-after-extra-time-1.1039089

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