THREE-LING ‘BIRDS’ FLY OVER ‘BULL’

(At Somhlolo National Stadium)

Highlanders........................... (0)1
Palma (OG) 56th
Swallows............................... (1)3
Sandile 23rd, 54th, ‘D4D’ 57th
(Swallows won 4-2 on aggregate )

LOBAMBA – Mbabane Highlanders were left red in the face by super-charged rivals Mbabane Swallows, who put up a display that the left the opposition in awe.

Back from the starting 11, striker Sandile Hlatjwako was inspirational upfront, covering the 70 metres with ease, as he caused the dithering Highlanders all sorts of problems.
He capped his good day in the office with a match-defining brace, a goal in each half, before Njabulo ‘D4D’ Ndlovu bagged the third shortly after Mandla Palma had scored into his own net. The result has resulted in the team cruising to its record fourth straight Castle Premier Challenge final.

If it was a boxing bout, the tactically inept hosts could have fallen through the ropes as they let the visitors, enthused by two-goal hero, Hlatjwako, put the game to bed just within an hour, winning 3-1 at a packed Somholo National Stadium  in the second leg yesterday to prevail  4-2 on aggregate.

They set up  a decider against usual suspects, Royal Leopard, which is repeat of last year’s showdown, won 2-0 by Thabo ‘Koki’ Vilakati’s charges.
Having recorded a credible 1-all draw in the reverse fixture, Meck Mwase’s charges just needed to keep the back door shut to make the cut but got more than they had bargained for against the ‘trigger happy’ opposition, who stretched their defence from the onset.

The match, headlined by the departure of DRC Congo-bound Swallows star midfielder Felix Badenhorst, had expectedly started in blistering pace, and Highlanders could have enjoyed an early lead if Mohamed Sabella never dug his foot into the turf when he found himself one on one with Swallows goalkeeper, Sandile ‘Nkomishi’ Ginindza seven minutes into the game.

The blue and white ensemble were made to rue the missed chance as early as the 23rd minute. Hlatjwako connected a cross from Mkhweli from the left wing to cancel the away goal advantage.
The home team could still not click towards the half hour-mark, a sign of a disastrous outing headlined by a penalty miss later in the second half after he was hacked with an open boot by Mandla Palma. It was no surprise when the struggling Sabella made way for forward Sibusiso Tfwala in the 26th minute, much to relief of the vexed supporters.

However, Swallows, who remained in the ascendancy, had not added to their tally at the break.

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