The month of March has been action-packed with a hectic schedule for Mamelodi Sundowns. The team participated in three different competitions and twice traveled out of the country. The first fixture of the month was a journey to Lubumbashi, DR Congo to take on TP Mazembe. The Brazilians made history as goals from Peter Shalulile and Lyle Lakay ensured victory over The Ravens. Masandawana became the first side in eleven years to inflict defeat to the DRC side in the CAF Champions League.
After returning home the team had a quick turnaround in order to play catch up in domestic football as they faced Polokwane City at home in the Nedbank Cup. Downs showed complete dominance from start to finish as they convincingly beat Rise and Shine 4-0 with goals from Shalulile, Lebohang Maboe, Andile Jali and Lesedi Kapinga, with the latter two opening their accounts for the season.
Masandawana then took a trip down to the Cape Winelands to take on Stellenbosch in the DStv Premiership. The last time the two sides met was in the Nedbank Cup in early February in a game which saw a late winner from Peter Shalulile. The league game followed a similar trend to the cup game and it was that man Shalulile who came back to haunt Stellies again at the death to secure the 2-1 win for Sundowns. The goal took Peter to eight in the league for the season and he also secured an assist when he set up Gaston Sirino for the equaliser at the beginning of the second half.
Next up was the return leg clash in the CAF Champions League against TP Mazembe at Loftus Versfeld. A 1-0 win for Mamelodi Sundowns meant that they became the first side to do the double over the Ravens in 33 years. At the same time, the win also meant that The Brazilians qualified for the last 8 and remain on the list of only five teams who have not lost a game in the current Champions League campaign.
The Brazilians closed their football for the month of March with a game against Black Leopards which ended in a one-all draw. Masandawana have now played twenty-six games in all competitions and have not been defeated since the opening day loss to Bloemfontein Celtic in the MTN 8.
With the season having passed the halfway mark, Mamelodi Sundowns are currently on top of the league with forty points after eighteen games and are also in the quarter-finals of the Nedbank Cup. In the CAF Champions League, they are also sitting on the summit of Group B with twelve points after winning all four of their games.
