'We are ready for the Nedbank Cup'

The draw for the Nedbank Cup last-32 fixtures was conducted at the Nedbank offices in Sandton last Thursday, 18 January. Madridtas FC, who bought their ABC Motsepe League franchise from Black Leopards at the beginning of this season, were pitted against D General FC from Bloemfontein.

Although they will play away from home, Madridtas is adamant that they will beat General and proceed to the next round of the prestigious competition. According to the head coach of the team, Mr Mashudu “Coolio” Ndou, their wish to play against a team from the same division in the last-32 round was granted. General FC is campaigning in the Free State Stream of the ABC Motsepe League.

Ndou said that they would use the game to gauge their level of readiness for the national promotional playoffs. He added that their aim was to win the league title and partake in the promotional playoffs at the end of the season.

When asked if their Nedbank Cup campaign would not divide their attention and make them lose focus on their mission to win the league championship, the former head coach of Munaca FC said that nothing would stop them from winning the league title and going beyond the last-16-round stage of the Nedbank Cup. He revealed that they had recently signed several experienced players to solidify their squad.

Ndou’s utterances are likely to become a reality if the team’s performance in their last two games is anything to go by. The Tshifudi side had done the unexpected when they rose to the occasion and beat Vondwe XI Bullets 1-0 at the Tshifudi Stadium two weeks ago. They deposited more vital points into their league account when they beat Musina United 3-0 at the same venue last Saturday.

Madridtas FC and D General will clash on 20 February. The match starts at 15:00. The top-eight phase of the tournament starts on 12 March, and the quarter-finals will be played on 13 April.

Date:26 January 2024

By: Frank Mavhungu

Frank is a Human Resources Manager at the Department of Public Works in Limpopo. He is the longest serving correspondent of the Mirror, having joined us at the end of 1990.  He mainly writes sports reports and resides at Tsianda Village. In 2004, Frank won the National Castle League Award, an award for the best reporter in the SAB league in South Africa.

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