HOW BUFFS SNATCHED E350 000 WITH MILITARY PRECISION

MBABANE – The MTN log standing doesn’t lie.

One defeat against Mbabane Highlanders (0-2) on April 28 at the King Sobhuza II Memorial Stadium, two draws against Mbabane Swallows on the opening weekend of the season on December 13, 2020 and the 1-all draw with Royal Leopard last week Wednesday are the only three games where Young Buffaloes dropped points in the gruelling opening round of the 2020/2021 season. 12 wins including a historic 8-0 win over premier league rookies Tinyosi FC on May 16 at the Prince of Wales Sports Ground, where ‘Amathole Ezinyathi’ broke a four-and-a-half year set by Mbabane Swallows on November 9, 2016, when the ‘Birds’ annihilated Red Lions 8-1, tells the beautiful story of a team that has broken many records than plates this season.

It tells the tale of a team that lived up to the motivational words of former American Olympic swimmer, Michael Phelps, that it is not how you start but how you finish that matters. When Buffaloes, the only team to win the EswatiniBank Cup three times in a row in the year 2017, 2018 and 2019, lost 0-2 to Mbabane Highlanders on April 28, many other teams would have dropped their heads in particular with police side, Royal Leopard, on a nine-match winning streak at that point. But the army side’s never-say-die spirit comes like second nature to Sabelo Mnisi’s troops.

In fact, the turning point was the next match on Workers’ Day when they beat a resisting Tambuti FC 3-2 which should have sent the warning bells that the army side were not about to give up on the race without a fight. The 1-all draw with Royal Leopard was a huge body blow but still they kept faith that football has no sentiments. They did the business on Saturday against Manzini Sea Birds as Leopard floundered about against plucky Manzini Wanderers, enabling the army side to walk away with the E350 000 incentive. In a season that has been as exciting as much as it has been punctuated by controversial events, SPORTS EDITOR, LWAZI DLAMINI gives us a review of the league first round as he best knows how.

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