Mokoena's Thunderbolt Secures Late Victory for Sundowns
Mamelodi Sundowns left it late, but they left King Zwelithini Stadium with exactly what they came for: three points and another statement of intent in the Betway Premiership title race.
With the match seemingly drifting towards a draw, Teboho Mokoena stepped up two minutes from time and ripped the script to shreds. Picking up the ball on the edge of the area, he lashed a ferocious strike past the Golden Arrows goalkeeper to seal a 2-1 victory and keep Sundowns clear at the top.
Final Score: Sundowns 2 - 1 Golden Arrows
New signing strikes, Arrows hit back
Sundowns had earlier looked on course for a more routine afternoon when Siyanda Ndlovu, one of the club’s new arrivals, marked his outing with the opening goal in the first half. The Brazilians controlled long spells, moved the ball with authority and appeared to have Arrows where they wanted them.
Arrows refused to fold. They hung in, fought for second balls and gradually turned the match into a contest played at a relentless tempo. Their reward came after the break when Junior Dion levelled matters, punishing Sundowns and igniting the home crowd.
From there, the game opened up. Chances, tackles, transitions – it became a test of nerve as much as quality.
Sundowns, who had seen so many domestic games in recent seasons drift into comfortable wins, suddenly had to scrap.
Cardoso hails character in the chaos
When Dion’s equaliser hit the net, the evening could easily have unravelled. Cardoso knew it.
“I’m obviously happy with the character we’ve shown because sometimes if you concede a goal like that, you don’t have the mental capacity to be resilient and to fight for something,” the Sundowns coach said afterwards.
For him, this was about more than three points. It was a live examination of the culture he is trying to embed in a squad already used to winning.
“So it means that the message, the character and attitude we’re trying to build is strong. No one can destroy the attitude and that is something that we have to state all the time.
“It will not obviously happen every time that we score in the last minute but if we believe, it will happen more frequently and the team showed belief.”
Belief, in this case, wore the number of Mokoena. His late strike not only settled the contest but pushed Sundowns to 16 points from six matches, three clear of Orlando Pirates, who do still have a game in hand.
Top of the table, and already setting the pace.
Lessons in maturity despite the win
Cardoso, though, did not leave Durban blinded by the drama of the finale. The win thrilled him; the way his side handled the closing stages did not.
“What I didn’t like is that after we scored the two one we still went to go attack like it was the last minute of the match and we were losing by two goals,” he admitted.
The pressure finally told in the form of Mokoena’s rocket, but Sundowns’ game management once in front left their coach unimpressed. With the lead secured so late, the obvious play was to strangle the tempo, keep the ball and drag the clock towards full-time. Instead, they chased another goal.
“But we needed to have the maturity at that point to manage the game and keep the ball in the right places to finish the game in the few minutes that were remaining. There’s obviously some learning to do from this match so that we can become stronger in the future.”
It was a revealing assessment. Cardoso is not content with merely winning; he wants his side to control every phase, especially when legs are heavy and decisions become rushed.
Focus turns to Loftus and a growing streak
Sundowns now roll back into Pretoria for Wednesday’s clash with Siwelele FC at Loftus Versfeld, carrying a four-match winning streak across all competitions and the confidence of a side that keeps finding answers.
They sit on top, they are grinding out results, and they have a coach demanding higher levels even on nights when the scoreboard smiles.
If this is what Sundowns look like while still “learning”, what happens when the maturity Cardoso wants finally matches the belief his players showed in Durban?
