Bottom three beaten again in Gauteng Development League

Heading into round nine of the Gauteng Development League, SuperSport Schools Plus highlighted the difficulties of the three teams – Wits Junior, Panorama FC and NWU Vaal Academy – at the bottom of the league standings. It was, unfortunately for them, more of the same on Saturday as they all suffered losses.

Wits went down to Highlands Park, Panorama was beaten by Remember Elite Sport Academy (RESA), and NWU Vaal came up short against Rosina Sedibane Modiba.

There were, however, noticeable improvements made by all three of the strugglers during their round nine fixtures. They all attacked with more intensity, displayed better discipline in their defensive strategies, and appeared to have taken steps towards closing the gap between themselves and the top teams in the league.

Of the three teams, Panorama FC looked the most improved. The side from the western region of Johannesburg went into their fixture against RESA having scored only four goals in the league. On Saturday, during a defeat at President Park, they doubled that figure, eventually falling one goal shy of a decent RESA side, in going down 4-5.

More than anything, Panorama’s downfall stemmed from their inability to contain and close off the RESA forwards, who exposed Panorama’s lack of composure under pressure.

In the first half, Panorama conceded two penalties, which were converted by Nkululeko Sekese and Kabelo Phuthiyagae respectively. Phuthiyagae, then, made it a double in the opening stanza, courtesy of an assist from Katleho Majoe.

In the second half, Tshegofatso Rampitsang and Thembinkosi Mlangeni also got onto the score sheet to help RESA seal a crucial victory at home.

At Marks Park, in Johannesburg, Wits Junior slipped to a 1-2 defeat to Highlands Park, while NWU Vaal lost 0-2 to Rosina Sedibane Modiba.

In other results, Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs maintained the top two spots on the log, with 3-1 and 3-2 victories over School of Excellence and SuperSport United respectively.

Jomo Cosmos pulled off the biggest upset of the weekend, beating TS Galaxy 2-0, while Sevens Academy won by the same scoreline against Kathorus Hyper Academy.

Randburg AFC and East Rand Athletic Club played to a heated 1-1 draw at the Tsakane Stadium, while Tuks and Joburg City walked away with one point each after a goalless draw in Pretoria.

RESULTS

u19

Mamelodi Sundowns 3-1 School of Excellence
Sevens Academy 2-0 Kathorus Hyper Academy
Remember Elite Sports Academy 5-4 Panorama FC
Tuks 0-0 Joburg City
Randburg AFC 1-1 East Rand Athletic Club
TS Galaxy 0-2 Jomo Cosmos
Wits Junior 1-2 Highlands Park
NWU Vaal 0-2 Rosina Sedibane Modiba
Kaizer Chiefs 3-2 SuperSport United

u17

Mamelodi Sundowns 1-2 School of Excellence
Sevens Academy 0-3 Kathorus Hyper Academy
Remember Elite Sports Academy 3-2 Panorama FC
Tuks 1-3 Joburg City
Randburg AFC 7-1 East Rand Athletic Club
TS Galaxy vs Jomo Cosmos (Abandoned due to TS Galaxy’s failure to produce cards)
Wits Junior 2-0 Highlands Park
NWU Vaal 0-3 Rosina Sedibane Modiba
Kaizer Chiefs 2-3 SuperSport United

u15

Mamelodi Sundowns 2-1 School of Excellence
Sevens Academy 1-2 Kathorus Hyper Academy
Remember Elite Sports Academy 2-1 Panorama FC
Tuks 0-0 Joburg City
Randburg AFC 3-1 East Rand Athletic Club
TS Galaxy 2-2 Jomo Cosmos
Wits Junior 1-1 Highlands Park
NWU Vaal 1-1 Rosina Sedibane Modiba
Kaizer Chiefs 2-3 SuperSport United

u13

Mamelodi Sundowns vs School of Excellence (Abandoned, failure to produce required documents)
Sevens Academy vs Kathorus Hyper Academy (Abandoned, no medical services at the venue)
Remember Elite Sports Academy 0-4 Panorama FC
Tuks 1-2 Joburg City
Randburg AFC 3-1 East Rand Athletic Club
TS Galaxy 5-1 Jomo Cosmos
Wits Junior 4-0 Highlands Park
NWU Vaal 0-3 Rosina Sedibane Modiba
Kaizer Chiefs 1-0 SuperSport United