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13 January 2020
The Nedbank Cup Last 32 draw has thrown up some tasty ties that pit both the giants of the South African game against one another, and provides minnows with the chance to write their name in history. In Part 1 of our look at the 16 ties, we have a massive all-Premier League clash and a game that sees the only four-tier club in the competition take on top-flight opposition.
POLOKWANE CITY VS BAROKA FC
A Polokwane Derby between two top-flight Limpopo clubs who have both been struggling at the foot of the Premier League this season. The clubs met this past weekend, with Baroka claiming a 1-0 success as Ranga Chivaviro netted an early penalty to settle the contest. Baroka have the edge down the year, with three wins to two for Polokwane, and four matches ending in draws. Baroka have also won the last two games. Baroka have a special history in the Nedbank Cup having ousted Moroka Swallows and Kaizer Chiefs while still in the third-tier in 2011. Polokwane have never been past the quarterfinals, which they managed in 2016 before being ousted by… Baroka FC.
ZIZWE UNITED VS HAPPY WANDERERS
A battle between two sides from the ABC Motsepe League which is likely to be tightly-contested, with both feeling they will have an excellent chance to advance. Zizwe United are from the Cape Town suburb of Nyanga, while Wanderers hail from the KwaZulu-Natal coastal town of Margate. Zizwe are appearing at this stage for the first time, but Wanderers were involved in the Nedbank Cup Last 32 in 2018, when they were narrow 1-0 losers to provincial rivals Royal Eagles. The Cape Town club have narrowly missed out on promotion to the GladAfrica Championship in recent years, and are led by experienced coach Julius Dube.
STELLENBOSCH FC VS MARITZBURG UNITED
Another all-Premier League tie as Maritzburg United make the trip to Cape Town to face-off against the Winelands club, hoping this year to repeat their 2018 Nedbank Cup final appearance, where they lost to Free State Stars in the decider in the Mother City. These two asides have only ever met once before and it came in Cape Town earlier this season when they played to a 0-0 draw. Maritzburg also reached the semifinals in 2014, but last year went out in the first round as they lost on penalties to second-tier side Witbank Spurs. They have already made one cup final this season when they lost the Telkom Knockout decider to Mamelodi Sundowns.
ORLANDO PIRATES VS BIDVEST WITS
One of the picks of the Last 32 matches pits two former champions against one another in what will be a colossal tussle. Pirates were Nedbank Cup winners in 2011 and 2014, when they beat Wits 3-1 in the decider, while The Clever Boys claimed the 2010 title with a 3-0 win over AmaZulu. Both will have targeted Nedbank Cup success this season, so one will be left disappointed with a first round exit. Wits won a thriller 4-3 when the teams met in the league earlier this campaign, while incredibly there has not been a draw in any of the last 15 tussles between the clubs in all competitions, with Wits leading the head-to-head 9-6 in that time. But they have also won nine of the last 11 meetings between the sides.
AMAVARARA VS SUPER EAGLES
The second all-ABC Motsepe League clash in this year’s Last 32 ensures that there will be at least two SAFA sides in the second round. Super Eagles have been here in the previous two years, but will be hoping to make it third-time lucky to as they seek to get past the Last 32 for the first time. They were a second-tier side in 2018 when they lost 2-1 to eventual champions Free State Stars, but were relegated at the end of that season and were part of the SAFA structures in 2019 when they lost by the same scoreline to Bloemfontein Celtic. This will therefore be the first time they meet a side from outside of their Free State province. Amavarara will make their debut in the Nedbank Cup Last 32 and hail from Komani, formerly Queenstown, though they are likely to move the game to either East London or Port Elizabeth
VAAL UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY VS LAMONTVILLE GOLDEN
ARROWS On paper the biggest mismatch in the Last 32 as fourth-tier Vaal University of Technology take on Premier League side Lamontville Golden Arrows. It is an amazing opportunity for the SAB Regional League side to write their names into history with a major scalp, against a Golden Arrows side that has a number of established stars and is coached by the experienced Steve Komphela. VUT are debuting at this stage, while Golden Arrows have reached the semifinals in two of the last three seasons. They lost 1-0 to Orlando Pirates in 2017, before being surprise 3-1 losers to eventual champions TS Galaxy last year.
CHIPPA UNITED VS TS GALAXY
Holders TS Galaxy from the GladAfrica Championship have a tough start to the defence of their title when they travel away to in-form Chippa United. Galaxy stunned Kaizer Chiefs in last year’s final and have in fact won all five of their previous Nedbank Cup matches, having only been formed at the start of last season. Galaxy coach Dan Malesela will make an emotional return to his former employers, where he had two spells in charge of the side. Chippa have been Nedbank Cup semifinalists in two of the last three years, losing on penalties to SuperSport United in 2017 and 4-2 to Kaizer Chiefs last season. They knocked two heavyweights out of the competition in 2019 in Mamelodi Sundowns and BidVest Wits, but will now seek not to become the subject of an upset themselves.
BLOEMFONTEIN CELTIC VS AMAZULU
The third all-Premier League tie so far in the Last 32 draw and it has the potential to be another hugely intriguing tie. AmaZulu beat Celtic 2-1 in Bloemfontein in late December, which will give them plenty of heart for this tie, but that was their only win at Phunya Sele Sele since 2009. Perhaps surprisingly this will be the first ever meeting between the sides in South Africa’s FA Cup despite competing regularly for the last 35 years. They have, in fact, only ever clashed in two cup games in any competition.
*The views represented are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent those of Nedbank.