Winners & Losers – Carling Knockout Round of 16

Kaizer Chiefs and Sundowns were both eliminated from the Carling Knockout in dramatic fashion this weekend.

On Saturday, 10-men Sundowns were knocked out by a spirited Marumo Gallants in a penalty shootout that ended at 11pm. And then on Sunday, it was the turn of Chiefs to suffer the same shootout fate at the hands of Stellenbosch. Besides these results, there were big wins for KZN sides Durban City, Richards Bay and Golden Arrows. Winners & Losers is a statistical review of the weekend action.

Winners

Fezile Gcaba

You may not have heard his name before this weekend, but chances are you may now never forget it after. Fezile Gcaba made a mark for himself with a match-winning hat-trick on Friday night, a rare feat in the competition.

12 – Gcaba is only the 12th player in PSL history to grab a hat-trick in a League Cup game.

Marumo Gallants

On the three previous occasions that Marumo met Sundowns in Cup competitions, they were always eliminated. Bookmakers probably had this in mind when setting pre-game odds, but Marumo had other plans. It should not come as a massive surprise though – they often do well in Cups.

¾ – Marumo Gallants have reached the semis in 3 of their last 4 Cup participations.

Alexandre Laffite

Things were always going to be difficult for the 28-year old coach facing Chiefs, Pirates and Sundowns in his opening eight league games in the PSL. Yet. he’s done well. He’s already beaten Pirates, and drawn with Sundowns & Chiefs in the league. Now, he’s knocked Sundowns out of the Cup.

28 – Lafitte is the youngest coach in the PSL, with five of Marumo’s starters on Saturday older than him.

Abdeslam Ouaddou

It was rash to expect immediate success after Ouaddou took over from Jose Riveiro at Pirates. Murmurs of discontent had already started when they lost their first two league games. Two months later, the picture looks altogether different.

8 – Ouaddou has become the first Orlando Pirates coach in PSL history to win eight consecutive games (all competitions).

Gavin Hunt

Gavin Hunt will be mightily pleased to have got past Polokwane City in the League Cup on the weekend. After all, he has been knocked out at the first round of this competition since it came back in 2023.

4-1 The 4-1 victory over Polokwane City is the exact reverse result Gavin Hunt suffered at the same stage and against the same opponent in 2023.

Losers

Sundowns

With trips to Nigeria (Remo Stars), and league games against Sekhukhune and Orlando Pirates to come, things are not going to get easier for Miguel Cardoso after the international break. Sundowns have not become awful overnight, they have simply become inconsistent – blowing hot today, then cold tomorrow.

8 – The last eight games have seen them score 0 – 4 – 0 – 3 – 1 – 3 – 0 – 0.

Kaizer Chiefs’ bluntness

Chiefs’ lack of goals is a worrying oddity – they haven’t scored more than two goals in any of their ten matches in all competitions. Either they find their goalscoring streak or a promising start to the season will fade into nothing.

127 – No team has taken more shoyts than Kaizer Chiefs this season (127).