Nie Cele
All eyes will be at Old Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane for the mouth-watering first leg MTN8 semi-final encounter between Sekhukhune United and Orlando Pirates this afternoon at 15:00.
The two outfits will be playing each other in three hectic successive matches including their Betway Premiership clash on August 22, August 25, and August 29, 2026
At a midweek media briefing held at MTN Headquarters, both coaches spoke their mind and previewed these upcoming matches in front of the media.
Burundi born Sekhukhune Coach, Cedric Kaze told a horde of media, this is “Babina Noko’s” biggest week.
“It’s very important to manage these two matches. We know how big the mountain to climb is. We need to be at our best and show our intentions.”
Unperturbed Kaze also pointed, the game on Saturday is just one half.
“We are playing defending Champions and we are preparing ourself to compete. We need to have our mind and plans clear.”
The two sides recent meeting in January 2026 ended in a goalless draw in a game that was heavily dominated by Pirates at Peter Mokaba Stadium
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Head-to-Head
According to Pirates website. Bucs and Sekhukhune have a rivalry that only stretches over five seasons, consisting of just two cup games. Their first high-stakes encounter was the 2022/23 Nedbank Cup final, where the Buccaneers secured a dramatic 2-1 victory to walk away as champions.
They then contested the quarter-final of the MTN8, with the same team emerging victorious once more – this time in more emphatic fashion as they put five unanswered goals past Babina Noko at Orlando Amstel Arena to launch the defence of their title.
Across competitions, the two sides have met 12 times with Pirates edging the head-to-head results with six wins to Sekhukhune’s four while only two games have produced stalemates. The Soweto Giants are also responsible for most of the goals, as they account for 15 of the 25 scored thus far.
Speaking at the same Briefing ahead of this match, Bucs Coach, Abdeslam Ouaddou said everybody in the team is taking this match seriously given the organization, management and professionalism around this tournament, arguing this game won’t be easy because they are playing the first game away from home with a very good team in a small field.
“We want to keep this title. We want to go there with ambition and make a result. We know we have two games. It’s a game that must be cleverly played.”
ADDITIONAL INFO SOURCED.
