Day 24 of the Discovery Walter Sisulu Soccer Challenge in Soweto was drama-filled with teams sealing their round of 16 spots and the pressure now turning up a notch.
Former champions La Masia became the only team to win all their seven group stage games in the 17th edition of the Discovery Challenge when they beat Martimo FC 2-0 via a walkover to cruise into the last 16 at the Nike Football Training Centre in Soweto.
La Masia with their rock solid defence conceded the least number of goals in the group stage (four) and found the back of the net 14 times. Having won the tournament in 2017, La Masia are one of the favourites to lift the trophy.
In Group G Meadowlands Academy did the unthinkable when they hammered J Stars 21-0 to jump into second place and qualify for the last 16 with Zak Park dropping to third place due to Academy’s superior goal difference.
Academy before their encounter against J Stars needed to score 17 goals to go through.
In the process, the team from Meadowlands broke the Discovery Challenge record for the most goals scored in a game set by Soweto FC back in 2016 when they thrashed Mofolo Aces 20-1.
Defending champions Sneke Chillers was the last team to qualify for the round of 16 keeping their title defence intact as they beat Inqaba 2-0 in what was a must win game for them.
Other teams that will battle it out in the knockout phase starting on Thursday include; Strokes FC, Sabelo Super Stars FC, Villa Marseille, River Park FC, White City Spurs, Flamingo FC, Burundi FC, Premier Impala, ASR FC, Galacticos, Meadowlands Harmony FC, NC Zasco, Dube Continental and Pimville West Ham will fight for the two remaining spots.
To stay updated on the tournament, follow Discovery Walter Sisulu Soccer Challenge 2019 on Facebook and use the hashtag #DWSSC19 across platforms to follow all the action.INFO SUPPLIED BY Msports Marketing
