MTN8 Final: Orlando Pirates and AmaZulu is a Rare Cup Meeting With Interesting Facts

• Orlando Pirates and AmaZulu are preparing for the MTN8 final on Saturday at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban
• The Buccaneers defeated Mamelodi Sundowns, while Usuthu accounted for Kaizer Chiefs in the competition's semi-finals
• The two oldest existing teams in South African football rarely ever meet in cup competitions, judging by the facts

The Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban will be rocking on Saturday evening.

In what might be considered a home match for them, Amazulu will lock horns with Orlando Pirates in the final of the MTN8, which will kick off at 6pm.

Sports Brief has compiled a list of facts detailing the historic fixture, involving the oldest existing teams in South African football.

FACTS:

• Since 1985, Orlando Pirates and AmaZulu have met on 69 occasions. The former boasts a dominant 32 wins to 11, with 26 draws. Pirates have scored 98 times, with AmaZulu replying with 57 goals
• Since then, the clubs have met just five times in cup competitions. The Buccaneers boast four wins to Usuthu's one
• This is the first time that Pirates and AmaZulu will meet in the MTN8 since 1994, when the competition was still known as the BP Top 8. In a 3rd/4th place play-off, Marks Maponyane and Helman Mkhale scored for Pirates in a 2-1 victory, with Richard Farrer netting for AmaZulu
• The two sides have ever only met twice in a final. This was in the Life Challenge Cup (Nedbank Cup) finals of 1973 and 1974, which the Buccaneers won 5-2 and 1-0 respectively
• Amazulu's last cup final appearance was the Nedbank Cup final in 2010, where they were soundly defeated 3-0 by the now-defunct Bidvest Wits
• Pirates last appeared in a final back in 2020, when they defeated the also-defunct Bloemfontein Celtic 2-1 in the MTN8 final at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.

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Football

MTN8 Final: Orlando Pirates coach says Siyabonga Mpontshane mistake does not guarantee Richard Ofori start

It appears that Orlando Pirates goalkeeper Siyabonga Mpontshane has been forgiven for the events of last Saturday at Soccer City.

Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Yusuf Maart spotted him off his line, firing the ball some 55 or so metres into the empty net with Mpontshane all at sea. The Amakhosi went on to win the match 1-0.

When asked by Sports Brief at a club media briefing if these factors would influence the selection of who starts against AmaZulu in the MTN8 final on Saturday, coach Jose Riveiro responded:

"I have four goalkeepers in the squad. Kopano [Thuntsane], Sipho [Chaine], Siyabonga and Richard. All of them are going to train this weekend as usual. At the end of the week, we are going to make a decision about which one of them is the right choice to play in this game."