Khubvi Dangerous Darkies will not take part in the quarterfinal stage of the Benjies Soccer Challenge. They were booted out of the tournament by Matangari Rising Stars, who beat them 6-4 at the Khubvi grounds on Saturday.
It was a game of two halves as Darkies were the superiors in the first half when it came to ball possession, while Stars came back in the last stanza. Darkies were firing on all cylinders in the opening minutes. That frustrated the opponents from Matangari village. Rising Stars lost shape in the middle of the park and Darkies capitalized to score their opening goal in the 24th minute. Nthambeleni Phidane was on target with a ground cutter, following a neat pass by Avhatakali Tshivhase.
Darkies continued to control the game, but it was difficult for them to find their way through the defence of Stars. The score was 1-0 at half time.
Darkies could have increased the margin in the 54th minute. They were awarded a penalty after their fast forward, Nthambeleni Phidane, was brought down within the box. Mutsinda Randima took responsibility for the penalty but shot straight to the keeper. That was a wake-up call to the players of Rising Stars. They initiated numerous dangerous moves from behind in their search for an equalizer. Their efforts paid off when Rotshidzwa Mavhungu scored with a volley from a free kick in the 78th minute.
Rising Stars came close to scoring again moments thereafter. Muofhe Mudau received a brilliant pass from Vhulahani Gavhi and unleashed a powerful shot from close range. The ball missed the target by inches. The winner was determined through penalty shootout as the full-time score was 1-1. Rising Stars converted all five their chances, while Darkies scored only three from the white spot.