Mamelodi Sundowns eased into the semifinals of the Nedbank Cup after they defeated third-tier Summerfield Dynamos 5-0 at a cold and wet Loftus Versfeld Stadium on Saturday evening.
The Brazilians never looked under threat of being upset by the minnows and joined Marumo Gallants and Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila in the final four thanks to strikes from Gaston Sirino, Lesedi Kapinga, Kermit Erasmus (two) and Pavol Safranko.
Dynamos put in a game effort, but were ultimately outclassed by a heavyweight that is chasing a quadruple of trophies across domestic and continental football in 2021-22.
Sundowns claimed the lead as early as the eighth minute, with Lesedi Kapinga crossing from the right to pick out Gaston Sirino – the Uruguayan swept a low shot through the grasp of Summerfield goalkeeper Bongani Masoga for 1-0.
Kapinga went from creator to goal scorer four minutes later, easily passing a shot into the corner of the net for 2-0 after being picked out by a pull-back from the left by-line by Neo Maema.
Midway through the first half Masoga made a superb save to turn away a goal-bound header from Kermit Erasmus, while further chances for the Brazilians before the half-hour mark saw Aubrey Modiba denied by a goal line clearance by Samuel Darpoh, as well as Teboho Mokoena rattling the crossbar with a long-range strike.
Dynamos were able to hold their own a little better in the final 15 minutes of the first half, ensuring that the score remained just 2-0 in favour of the hosts heading into the interval.
The minnows from KwaZulu-Natal had the first chance after the restart, with Samkele Ngubane sprinting away on a counter before rounding Ricardo Goss, but his effort from the right of the penalty area struck the near post in the 50th minute.
Two minutes later Sundowns made it 3-0, capitalising on a poor giveaway in defence from Dynamos – Sirino teed up Erasmus, who fired a low shot past Masoga and into the bottom corner of the net.
Erasmus netted a second goal to extend the lead to 4-0 in the 64th minute, getting on the end of Sirino’s cut-back from the by-line to fire high into the back of the net from close range.
Sirino racked up another assist in the 80th minute, providing a fine ball into the penalty area from a free kick that was headed home by substitute Pavol Safranko to wrap up the scoring and complete a rout in favour of ‘Downs.
The last spot up for grabs in the Nedbank Cup semifinals will be decided by a clash between Royal AM and University of Pretoria on Sunday afternoon.
Mamelodi Sundowns (2) 5 (Sirino 8’, Kapinga 12’, Erasums 52’ 64’, Safranko 80’)
Summerfield Dynamos 0
Sundowns: Goss, Mudau, Lebusa, Kekana, Modiba, Maboe (Safranko 79’), Mokoena, Maema (Mvala 79’), Kapinga (Mkhulise 65’), Sirino, Erasmus (Mkhuma 65’)
Dynamos: Masoga, Toure, Dlamini (B. Khumalo 71’), Darpoh, M. Khumalo, Zuke, Nene, Mekoa (Nuba 58’), Chili (N. Ngubane 58’), Vandala, S. Ngubane (Nguzana 58’)
SOURCED FROM THE PSL WEBSITE.
