Peter Shalulile bagged his ninth goal in the DStv Premiership to inspire Mamelodi Sundowns to their 14th straight win following their 2-0 victory over Sekhukhune United.
The Namibian quickly got back into scoring form after a long injury layoff. He put the home team ahead with a close-range poke on the 50th minute.
Sundowns were down to 10 players after 76 minutes when Chilean Marcelo Allende was sent off for a dangerous tackle. Soon after, Cassius Mailula scored to give Sundowns the win.
Shalulile has won a lot of awards in South Africa because he scores so many goals. He is two goals ahead of his closest competitors for the Golden Boot.
Mailula, who is a rising star, has scored six goals himself.
Sekhukhune had won four straight games and hadn’t lost in six when they went to Pretoria, but they couldn’t beat Sundowns. Ivory Coast goalkeeper Badra Sangare saved them from a worse loss.
With the win, Sundowns are now 22 points ahead of Richards Bay, who are in second place. On Sunday, Richards Bay will play AmaZulu in a Durban derby.
The club owned by Patrice Motsepe, the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and run by his eldest son, Tlhopie, is trying to win its sixth straight Premiership title and 13th overall.
At the same time, Orlando Pirates won their third game in a row by beating Marumo Gallants 2-0 in Rustenburg, which is in the northwest.
Monnapule Saleng scored after 36 minutes when he beat Ugandan goalkeeper Ismail Watenga with a hard shot off a pass.
Ndabayithethwa Ndlondlo scored a penalty against his old team, Marumo, in the 68th minute to seal the team’s fate. Marumo has only won two of its last 20 games.
Photo by Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix