TS Galaxy is Kaizer Chiefs’ worst nightmare | GDL Youth Cup Semis

The semi-finals of the Gauteng Development League (GDL) Youth Cup are upon us, with four divisions set to grace Marks Park this coming weekend as teams do battle for places in next week’s finals of the knockout competition.

A gruelling four weeks of intense, closely contested matches has the remaining sides on the verge of playing for silverware. In the u19 division, the Soweto giants, Kaizer Chiefs, strange as it may sound, caused an upset by beating the in-form GDL champions Highlands Park to make it to the semi-finals.

Meanwhile, TS Galaxy, their opponents on Saturday, have had to graft hard to make it to the final four. Last weekend, they eliminated Joburg City.

This weekend, Chiefs, high in confidence following their victory over Highlands Park, are the favourites ahead of the semi-final showdown. However, there’s more to the TS Galaxy side than meets the eye.

In the recently concluded GDL, Galaxy finished inside the top-eight, after a solid league campaign.

During the course of 2023, they’ve also accounted for some big guns, including SuperSport United, Wits and Mamelodi Sundowns. The tag, “slayer of giants”, is one the team from Mpumalanga has earned this year.

Head-to-head, TS Galaxy is Kaizer Chiefs’ worst nightmare. They’re a thorn in the side of coach David Mathebula and his team. In fact, they boast a 100 percent win ratio against the gold and black this season.

They beat Chiefs 2-1 away at Naturena on the 10th of June, just a week after handing Mamelodi Sundowns a 2-1 loss. A little over a month ago, when Chiefs visited TS Galaxy, the home team repeated the 2-1 win they had achieved in their first meeting.

Time and again in the GDL, big teams, favoured to beat smaller, less-recognised sides, have come up short after failing to deal with the pressure of being the favourites. For those smaller sides, playing the big names often brings out the best in them.

Can TS Galaxy make it three-out-of-three this year against Kaizer Chiefs?

The encounter gets underway on Field B at Marks Park from 13:00 SAST.

Other Fixtures

U13 Division, 9:00
– Jomo Cosmos vs Mamelodi Sundowns (Field A)
– Kaizer Chiefs vs Joburg City (Field B)

U15 Division, 10:15
– Jomo Cosmos vs Mamelodi Sundowns (Field A)
– Rosina Modiba vs TS Galaxy (Field B)

U17 Division, 11:30
– School of Excellence vs Tuks (Field A)
– Kaizer Chiefs vs Joburg City (Field B)

U19 Division, 13:00
– NWU Vaal vs Mamelodi Sundowns (Field A)
– Kaizer Chiefs vs TS Galaxy (Field B)