After a break of two weeks, the teams affiliated to the Motsepe Foundation Championship League will be in action again this weekend. All eyes will be on the Limpopo derby between Black Leopards and Polokwane City, which will be played at the Malamulele Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Apart from the fact that sparks always fly wherever the two teams meet, Sunday's game is expected to be a typical thriller from the onset the end for several reasons. A win for City will keep the team in the race for the league title. Rise and Shine, as they are affectionately called, are currently lying in the second position with 34 points, two behind the pace setters, Casric Stars.
As for Lidoda duvha, they must win the match at all costs to restore their lost pride and to enhance their chances of escaping the relegation axe at the end of the season. The Thohoyandou side are perched at the bottom of the log with 13 points. Black Leopards managed to win only two of the 17 matches they have played to date. Leopards were beaten 0-3 by City in their first-round league match played at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane at the beginning of the season.
The newly appointed head coach of Leopards, Mr Owen da Gama, will be giving the players instructions from the team's technical bench for the first time on Sunday. The former Bafana Bafana head coach had taken over from Zimbabwean mentor Mr Rodwell Dhlakama, who parted ways with Leopards last Tuesday.
Black Leopards will travel to Pretoria next Wednesday (22nd). Their midweek match against JDR Stars will be played at the Soshanguve Giant Stadium outside Pretoria.