Venda Football Academy (VFA) must beat Uthongathi FC to put some space between them and the relegation ghost when the two teams meet in their Motsepe Foundation Championship League match at the Princess Magogo Stadium in Durban on Sunday afternoon.
A win for VFA will be enough for the club to retain their Motsepe Foundation Championship franchise for at least one more season. VFA are lying in the 12th spot on the log standings with 30 points. Uthongathi have only pride at stake in the match as they are on the safe side regarding relegation. The "Cane Cutters", as they are affectionately called, are in the seventh spot on the log standings with 35 points.
A quick glance at the team's track record shows that Uthongathi are good travellers. Most of their victories were registered away from home. The KZN side had managed to win nine of the 26 games they had played to date. Uthongathi are still to beat VFA in a league match. They played to a 1-1 draw in their first-round league match, which was played at the Thohoyandou Stadium on Wednesday, 18 January.
The defenders of Uthongathi will have a mammoth task to stop VFA's goal poachers in Wanga Khorommbi, Rhulani Manzini and the team's Zimbabwean playmaker, Tatenda Tavengwa.
In other matches, Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila will rub shoulders with Magesi FC at the Dr Molemela Stadium in Bloemfontein. Black Leopards will visit Hungry Lions at the Windhoek Draught Stadium in Kimberley.
Polokwane City will play against JDR Stars at the Soshanguve Giant Stadium in Pretoria in one of three matches that will be played on Friday afternoon. The other fixtures are Cape Town Spurs vs Platinum City Rovers, MM Platinum vs Pretoria Callies, Cape Town All Stars vs Baroka FC and Casric Stars vs University of Pretoria FC.