Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies registered their sixth straight win on Sunday as they delivered a dominant first half en route to a 2-1 victory over the University of Johannesburg (UJ) FC in an away Hollywoodbets Super League fixture.
First-half goals from Lelona Daweti and Melinda Kgadiete were enough to hand Banyana Ba Style their sixth consecutive win in the league.
From the opening moments of the game, Sundowns Ladies demonstrated their formidable attacking abilities, with Daweti breaking the deadlock within the first three minutes. The team’s dominant performance persisted throughout the first half, and just before the halftime whistle, Kgadiete, who had previously scored twice against this opponent last season, added a goal to extend their lead to two.
In the second half, Sundowns Ladies faced strong resistance from the opposition goalkeeper, who denied them a couple of goal-scoring opportunities. Despite this, a late consolation goal from the hosts was not enough to stop the formidable Banyana Ba Style, who secured their sixth consecutive victory in a row.
Daweti, who scored her fifth goal of the campaign, expressed her satisfaction with the game’s outcome.
“We are delighted with the overall performance of our team, especially considering the challenging nature of our opponents. Throughout the game, we gave our absolute best and demonstrated our commitment by leaving everything on the field. Despite facing some nerve-wracking moments in the last few minutes, we displayed great character and bravery, ultimately securing the valuable three points. This result serves as a solid foundation for us moving forward, and we are fully determined to carry the positive momentum into our next game,” Daweti stated.
Lebohang Ramalepe, who once again showcased an impressive performance despite battling flu prior to the game, remains hopeful that her team can continue their winning streak in the upcoming match.
“The game was undoubtedly challenging. I joined the match in the second half with a strong desire to contribute to the scoreline. Despite not being able to score, both my teammates and I had to put in tremendous effort to ensure the victory. Now, it is time for us to regroup, learn from this experience and focus on preparing for our upcoming game. The winning momentum is with us, and we are determined to carry it forward,” said Lebohang.
The victory ensured that Sundowns Ladies maintained their top position on the log with 37 points, with 12 wins and 1 draw from 14 games.
In the goal-scoring department for Sundowns Ladies, Melinda Kgadiete’s recent goal takes her season tally to seven goals, placing her four goals behind Boitumelo Rabale, who leads the team with 11 goals. Additionally, Lelona has now equaled Andisiwe Mgcoyi’s five-goal count.
Next up for Sundowns Ladies is an encounter against Thunderbirds Ladies, who currently occupy the 14th position in the league standings.
The comments from the players are a direct contrast to what the coach thinks and I think coach Jerry summed it up nicely the Ladies were too complacent AND almost drew the game. The recent history of UJ’s results coupled with our win against our direct competitor for the honours UWC made our ladies to approach this game with an attitude of complacency …assuming it was going to be a walk in the park. Coach Jerry is right they deserve a touch-lashing because we can not afford undermining teams this season as they are all coming for us as champions so we should be highly professional and keep reminding teams who we really are… we know what we are capable of so we can not drop the ball. As you can see on the log it is very tight, UWC and TS Galaxy are pushing us all the way and any slip up they can overtake us and be on top. So big up coach Jerry for realising that the performance was below par. I watched the game and I also thought we were a shadow of ourselves in our performance