Bloemfontein Celtic’s woes continued in the Premier Soccer League with the side slumping to their seventh defeat of the season.
On Sunday Chippa United secured a league double over Celtic with a late 1-0 win at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium.
The match was heading to another stalemate, however, Rhulani Manzini made an immediate impact after coming on as a substitute to driving home the winner in the final minute of the match.
Phunya Sele Sele dominated the opening stages of the encounter, but they were forced to make a change 11 minutes into the game after the new striker, Fiston Razak Abdoul, sustained a head injury.
Coach Serame Letsoaka says the injury to his impressive marksman was a big blow to his side.
The Chilli Boys’ caretaker coach, Dan Malesela, in his turn was delighted with the away win which saw his team remaining 6th in the PSL standings.
“We also had to keep the boys calm, but the biggest (achievement) is moving away from the myth that we don’t win away, because for me it’s a myth – nothing else.
“It’s about doing the right things at the right time.”
Malesela conceded that he was a little worried that his team wouldn’t be fresh after a long bus trip from Port Elizabeth to the City of Roses on Saturday.
“We travelled seven hours yesterday, and I was very worried about the fatigue factor as there are no flights coming to Bloemfontein from PE, so this win is very good for the boys.
“We did a lot of preparations, stretches and loosening up, and it paid off in the end.”
The loss sees Celtic drop to 11th in the standings, following five wins, seven draws and seven losses.
Other results over the weekend saw Jomo Cosmos beat Free State Stars 1-0 in Potchefstroom and Maritzburg United held Platinum Stars to a one-all draw.
– MORGAN PIEK
