As Knockout competitions are accustomed to go, there will be heroes and there will be villains. Yet the line between hero and villain is so thin, the naked eye would struggle to see it. A new Bet Central feature in the 2021/22 season will be a Statistical Winners & Losers section, highlighting some of the weekend’s highs and lows from a statistical standpoint. We’re starting with the MTN8 weekend that was.
Bernard Parker – Winner
Bernard Parker is one of only a handful of players that have played in the Castle Premiership, the Absa Premiership and the DSTV Premiership. If you’re looking for experience, there are fewer players to look at than Bernard Parker – it is no surprise every coach continues to select him. Even if he is not the player he once was, this weekend marked another major milestone in his career.
58 – Parker’s goal against Sundowns was his 58th goal in all competitions for Chiefs, making him the club’s joint top-scorer with Siphiwe Tshabalala in the PSL era.
Lehlohonolo Seema – Winner
Golden Arrows, under Mandla Ncikazi, finished the 2020/21 season in the club’s highest ever position (4th). Thrust into the limelight after Ncikazi’s sudden departure, the chances of Lehlohonolo Seema improving on this were very slim. But a deep Cup run may be just what he needs to impress Mato Madlala and co.
2 – This is only the second time that Arrows have progressed to the MTN8 semis, having been knocked out in the quarter-finals in four of their five participations.
They went on to win the title the last time they progressed.
Cape Town City – Winner
The Citizens must have been watching with jealousy and envy as their former gaffer Benni McCarthy tore up record after record in the Premier League last season, including a record 5-1 win over City. When they lost their last game of the season, they were guaranteed 7th place and a Top8 meeting with whoever finished 2nd – McCarthy’s AmaZulu. John Comitis will be sleeping better this week.
1 – This was City’s first win over AmaZulu in six attempts (D2 L3 since Feb 2019).
Ruzaigh Gamildien – Winner
Nine years ago, Gamildien scored for Celtic as they knocked out Pirates as holders in the 2012 Telkom Knockout. This weekend he scored as Swallows FC knocked out Pirates as holders in the 2021 MTN8.
Josef Zinnbauer – Loser
Zinnbauer was looking to become the first ever PSL coach to retain the Top8 title, but those hopes were destroyed by Ruzaigh Gamildien’s first-half brace, which proved enough to send Pirates out. It’s Pirates 3rd loss in a home match under Josef Zinnbauer, with an interesting trend starting to emerge.
3 – Zinnbauer is the first Pirates coach to lose three home games since Eric Tinkler, who left the club five years ago.
McCarthy and Baxter – Losers
It is painful to lose to a last-minute winner. But that was Benni McCarthy’s fate on Sunday evening. It’s even more painful to get knocked out in a penalty shootout. Yet, that was Stuart Baxter’s fate on the weekend. For Benni, it must hurt even more that he suffered a 2nd quarter-final consecutive knockout, this time at a different club.
The two coaches went into the weekend looking to set a record, but came up short:
6 – In failing to win this weekend, McCarthy (W5 D2 L2 before) & Baxter (W5 D1 L3 before) both missed the chance of becoming the first coach to win six of his opening 10 games since the competition was sponsored by MTN.
Officiating – Losers
The less said the better. The poor officiating was the only dampener in an opening weekend filled with goals and drama. If the makers of a product are not showing interest in fixing the defects, the customers may start to lose interest.
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