'Buffaloes add to winged 'Birds' woes

(At Mavuso Sports Centre)  

M. Swallows....(0) 2  
Satiso 54th, Newman 80th  

Y. Buffaloes.....(1) 3  
‘Magwegwe’41st, Saviola 45th, Ali 77th  

MANZINI – A double-edged blow!  

Mbabane Swallows’ torrid run continued as they slumped to a third consecutive defeat, while Young Buffaloes completed a commanding league double, having edged Swallows 1-0 in the first round and now clinching a 3-2 triumph.  

Sandile ‘Magwegwe’ Mbingo, Sandile ‘Saviola’ Gamedze and Ali Matse found the net for Buffaloes, with Satiso Ndwandwe and Newman Philiso replying for Swallows.

The victory propelled Buffaloes to fourth in the standings with 51 points, just one shy of Green Mamba, who were held to a goalless stalemate by Mbabane Highlanders. A win in their final fixture against Madlenya, coupled with a slip from Green Mamba, could see Buffaloes snatch third.  

The Sindiso Gama-led charges, languishing in sixth with 35 points, face Illovo in their last match but risk being overtaken by Highlanders, who meet Ezulwini.

The match was marred by a subdued atmosphere, with fewer than 500 fans in attendance - far below the usual 3 000-plus for such high-profile clashes. Reports of unpaid player salaries and calls for the management’s resignation dampened spirits.

Salaries

Although salaries were reportedly settled before kick-off, the team’s lack of training in the preceding week was evident in their disjointed display.  

Post-match, some Swallows fans brandished placards demanding the Board’s resignation, while others, in a show of defiance or irony, clapped and sang despite the loss.

Swallows entered the contest winless in three, their last victory a 2-1 result against Rangers on April 21. Desperate for points after their first-round loss to Buffaloes, they were outmanoeuvred by a clinical army side.  

The match ignited with promise, as Buffaloes, under the stewardship of former national team coach Dominic Kunene, dominated the early exchanges but failed to capitalise. Their breakthrough arrived four minutes from halftime when Sandile ‘Magwegwe’ Mbingo unleashed a ferocious strike. Sandile ‘Saviola’ Gamedze doubled the lead on the stroke of half-time, outfoxing Swallows’ goalkeeper Sandanezwe Mathabela.  

Swallows responded in the 54th minute, Satiso Ndwandwe slotting home from Nhlanhla Ngwenya’s pinpoint cross to halve the deficit. Buffaloes, however, restored their two-goal cushion in the 77th minute through Ali Matse’s thunderous effort. A late penalty, awarded after Nhlanhla Ngwenya was felled by Machawe Gamedze, allowed Newman Philiso to coolly dispatch past Buffaloes’ goalkeeper Sicelo Mkhwananzi in the 80th minute, but it was merely a consolation.

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