Wholesale changes cost Sundowns against Galaxy

Miguel Cardoso made a total of ten changes to the Mamelodi Sundowns starting line-up that defeated title rivals Orlando Pirates in their midweek league clash, retaining only midfielder Nuno Santos.

Masandawana's fringe players failed to gel against the hard running TS Galaxy in their Nedbank Cup Round of 16 clash on Saturday and were duly punished with two first half goals that they failed to respond to.

The elimination leaves the Tshwane giants with two possible titles to compete for, the Betway Premiership and the CAF Champions League amid growing concerns about the teams' performances under the Portuguese coach.

Ouaddou's goalscoring concerns haunt Pirates

Orlando Pirates dream of a quadruple was shattered after they were eliminated on penalties by Motsepe Foundation Championship side Casric Stars on Saturday after a goalless draw.

AmaBhakaniya coach Abdeslam Ouaddou has been critical in recent weeks of his sides failure to convert more chances, and those concerns became a reality as Bucs crashed out of the Nedbank Cup.

The loss also marked the first time the Buccaneers have failed to reach the final of the tournament after three consecutive seasons.

Poor officiating hits Stellenbosch against Arrows

A blatant 59th-minute hand ball by Arrows defender and captain Ayanda Jiyane inside penalty the box was ignored by referee Michael Mosemang with the scored deadlocked at 0-0, with Stellies conceding the decisive goal just seven minutes later.

Stellenbosch head coach Gavin Hunt was dismayed by the referee's decision and believes the official should make an apology following the blunder.

It will be interesting if the Premier Soccer League Disciplinary Committee (PSL DC) will take action against the match official, with previous similar cases leading to suspensions.

Four KwaZulu-Natal team's progress

AmaZulu, Golden Arrows, Durban City and Motsepe Foundation Championship log leaders Milford FC all progressed to the quarterfinals of this seasons Nedbank Cup.

No team from KwaZulu-Natal has ever won the tournament, with only AmaZulu have reached the final of the tournament, losing 3-0 in the inaugural Nedbank Cup back in the 2009/2010 season.

Ironically, that was the last season that a team from the province won a cup title, with Arrows dismantling Ajax Cape Town 6-0 in the MTN8 final under current coach Manqoba Mngqithi.

Sekhukhune revival continues

Sekhukhune United extended their unbeaten run in February to four matches in all competitions, edging lower division side University of Pretoria 1-0 on Sunday afternoon at Tuks Stadium.

Eric Tinkler's team has now won all of their last four matches without conceding a single goal.

Babina Noko are currently in third spot on the Betway Premiership table and will be the favourites to win the Nedbank Cup title this season.

France and Italy underwhelm in final friendlies before Euro 2024