It was far from a polished win for Siwelele, but it was an important result for the club who had not managed to collect maximum points since the opening round when they beat Golden Arrows 3-1 in Bloemfontein.

On Sunday, Siwelele secured a 1-0 victory against their so-called “bigger brother” in the city thanks to a 39th-minute strike by former Bloemfontein Celtic and Kaizer Chiefs midfielder, Teboho Potsane. At that stage the goal was very much against the run of play, yet Siwelele made the most of their chances.

Tebogo Potsane. Photo: Morgan Piek

Marumo were actually the first to find the back of the net in the highly anticipated derby when the ball was fired into the goal to beat Bafana Bafana keeper Ricardo Goss within seconds of kick-off, but the referee ruled that what would have been a sensational opener was not valid and did not stand.

Although Bahlabane Ba Ntwa started brightly with the Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Goss forced to pull off several saves to keep the visitors at bay, it was the home side who broke the deadlock after pressing and winning back possession in Gallants’ half.

Katlego Mokhuoane stole the ball from Lebohang Mabotja before setting up eventual man of the match Tebogo Potsane, who made no mistake as the diminutive attacker drilled past keeper Washington Arubi at the near-post in the 39th minute, and Siwelele went into the break 1-0 ahead.

Gallants’ best chance came with seven minutes left on the clock when Zimbabwean international Daniel Msendami came within inches of scoring, but the ball rolled wide for a goal-kick after he had beaten Goss.

Siwelele were far from clinical in the game, but when they went forward, they looked a lot more dangerous, and they asked more serious questions of the Gallants captain and goalkeeper, Arubi.

Following the crucial victory, coach Lehlohonolo Seema told OFM Sport that the ability to win ugly by grinding out a result is very important, and it has lifted the morale in his camp.

Lungu Gamphani and Jaisen Clifford. Photo: Morgan Piek

“It’s very important that you can play badly and grind out results,” said the former Celtic skipper.

“The supporters, they are... they are happy. Look at the log, we’ve now put points on it. So, for us, like I said, we’re not cooking, we are watering.

“We’re going to have a lot of scrappy games, and we don’t care. All we want is to make sure we grind those results, we force those results, especially when we are playing at home, because away, you can see how difficult it is.

Pogiso Sanoka and Daniel Msendami. Photo: Morgan Piek

“So now we’re saying if we can fight like this at home, if we can go away and even put more effort into the fight, I can tell people who are waiting for us to play pretty football, you must not watch it.

“We’re going to fight from now until the end of the season to make sure that this team stays in the Premier League.”

The win has lifted Siwelele from the bottom of the log up to 12th on seven points. They remain three points behind the now 11th-placed Marumo, who in turn have not managed to secure a win in their last seven matches.

Marvin Sikhosana and Vincent Pule. Photo: Morgan Piek

Meanwhile, for both teams, the focus now shifts to cup football with the Carling Knockout Cup round of 16 on the weekend.

On Saturday at 15:00, Orlando Pirates will host Siwelele at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto, while at 20:00 Mamelodi Sundowns will entertain Marumo at the Lucas Masterpieces Moripe Stadium in Atteridgeville.

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek cvs