Top 5 sporting moments of the weekend


By Neo Poho

The past weekend was surely an entertaining weekend in the world of sport as Kaizer Chiefs won the Soweto Derby against rivals Orlando Pirates while Mamelodi Sundowns came back to salvage a draw against Al Ahly and Australia defeated South Africa in the T20 Women's World Cup.

1.Olisa Ndah gives Kaizer Chiefs the bragging rights at the FNB Stadium

Kaizer Chiefs recorded a second consecutive Soweto Derby league double victory over rivals Orlando Pirates at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday afternoon.

An own goal by Orlando Pirates defender Olisa Ndah in the 89th minute of the match was enough to hand Chiefs the bragging rights and the much needed 3 points in the DSTV Premiership table.

Pirates lost their captain Innocent Maela in the 60th minute when he was given his marching orders by referee Abongile Tom after he made a terrible tackle on Chiefs' Christian Saile at the edge of the box.

The red card seemed to have given Chiefs' coach Arthur Zwane a glimmer of hope as the mentor made a couple of offensive changes bringing in the likes of Caleb Bimenyimana, Happy Mashiane and Kgaogelo Sekgota to try and break the stagnant Pirates defense.

The pressure finally paid off as Ndah nodded in Edmilson Dove's speculative long ball into his own net with goalkeeper Sipho Chaine off his line.

Upon the loss Pirates assistant coach Sergio Almenara admitted that the result was painful as they have now lost to Chiefs in the last 5 DSTV Premiership encounters.

"It is painful for the fans, players and the coaches of Orlando Pirates, the only thing we can do now is to prepare very well in the week to be ready to face Swallows FC," said Almenara who addressed the media in the absence of suspended head coach José Riveiro.

The victory means that Chiefs have now kept their second spot finish aspirations alive by staying 5th on the DSTV Premiership table with 31 points after 21 games trailing second place SuperSport United by 5 points.

Amakhosi will next face Richards Bay FC at the King Zwelithini Stadium on Saturday the 4th of March 2023.

2.Mamelodi Sundowns and Al Ahly play out to a thrilling draw

Mamelodi Sundowns and Al Ahly played out to a 2-2 draw in their group B CAF Champions League match at the Al-Salam Stadium in Cairo on Saturday night.

In a tense opening 45 minutes, Mamelodi Sundowns broke the deadlock through striker Peter Shalulile in the 34th minute as the Namibian international combined with youngster Cassius Mailula to put Sundowns ahead going into halftime.

Ronwen Williams then saved Mohamed Hany's penalty five minutes into the second half however, Al Ahly restored parity in the 59th minute when Mohamed Abdelmonem headed the ball in the back of the net after a beautiful corner kick.

The equaliser gave Al Ahly the much needed confidence as the Egyptian giants took the match to the South African side in the second half applying pressure with waves of attack in a bid to get the second goal that would potentially give them the victory.

The pressure finally paid off in the 74th minute when winger Hussein El Shahat took matters into his own hands when he used his skill and pace to eliminate Khuliso Mudau down the right flank before hitting a powerful low shot that left Williams with no chance at the near post but to see the ball rattle the net for Al Ahly's second goal.

Al Ahly were then dealt with a major blow when they allowed Sundowns back into the game in the 80th minute as Thapelo Morena scored a brilliant goal after Mailula's shot hit the crossbar.

In a nervy finish to the encounter Sundowns held on for the draw as Al Ahly then pressed on in a bid to get the much needed third goal in order to salvage the three points in group B.

The draw means that Sundowns are still occupying the first spot in group B of the CAF Champions League on 7 points after 3 games while Al Ahly have registered their first point in the group having lost their opening group match last week to Al-Hilal.

3.Australia win the 2023 T20 Women's World Cup

Australia won their sixth Women's T20 World Cup title after defeating the Momentum Proteas by 19 runs in the final on Sunday afternoon at the Newlands Cricket Ground.

Winning the toss and choosing to bat first Australia had Beth Mooney to thank as she scored an unbeaten 74 runs to help Australia set the Proteas a target of 157 runs to victory after posting 156/6 in their allotted 20 overs at a packed Newlands ground.

In reply the Proteas started really slow in their run chase losing Tazmin Brits and Marizanne Kapp cheaply in the first 8 overs with the scoreboard on 46 runs.

Opening batter Laura Wolvaardt tried to fight for the Proteas as she hit 61 runs from 48 balls before a beautiful delivery by Megan Schutt had Wolvaardt back into the tunnel with the Proteas on 109 runs.

Wolvaardt's dismissal proved to be the final nail in the coffin as the Proteas started to lose wickets at regular intervals as Australia consolidated matters until the final ball was bowled with the Proteas still short of 19 more runs.

The victory signifies that indeed the Australian women's side is the best team in the world when it comes to women's cricket.

4.Manchester United end a six-year trophy drought

Erik Ten Hag has guided Manchester United to their first silverware in six years with a 2-0 win against Newcastle United in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley Stadium on Sunday night as Manchester United recorded their sixth success in the competition.

Casemiro opened the scoring when heading in a Luke Shaw free-kick in the 33rd minute and the lead was doubled before the interval when Marcus Rashford's shot looped in off Sven Botman, eventually going down as an own goal by the Dutch defender in the 39th minute of the match.

Manchester took the lead into halftime and when the two sides came back for the second half, Newcastle tried to come back in the game however, a resilient Manchester defense was up to the task neutralizing any form of attack from Eddie Howe's charges before referee David Coote blew the final whistle to signal the end of the match at a packed Wembley stadium.

The last time the Red Devils lifted the trophy was six years ago when beating Southampton 3-2, as Zlatan Ibrahimovic headed a late winner and David De Gea was the only current Red to start that game, although Marcus Rashford came on as a substitute.

Manchester United will now look to emulate the Carabao Cup triumph into the FA Cup as they take on West Ham United in the 5th round of the competition on Wednesday the 1st of March 2023.

5.New Zealand are the HSBC Los Angeles Sevens winners

New Zealand became the first men’s team to win two tournaments in the HSBC Word Rugby Sevens Series 2023 beating Argentina 22-12 in the Cup final in Los Angeles.

Leroy Carter was the hero for the All Blacks Sevens on a much more dry day two, scoring five tries including two in the showpiece match to help his side to their second successive title.

The victory means that New Zealand have now accumulated 107 points so far in the sevens standings with losing finalists in the Los Angeles sevens Argentina occupying the second spot on 86 points.

South Africa, Fiji and Samoa complete the top five of the sevens standings respectively.

The next tournament on the schedule will see the nations head to Vancouver, Canada from March 3-5 as the stakes amplify, with New Zealand hoping to make it three gold medals in a row this season having won in Sydney last time out.

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