Stellenbosch strike vital blow, TS Galaxy draw

Round 18 of the 2018/19 National First Division season saw leaders Stellenbosch strike a vital blow in the race for promotion, as they defeated Ajax Cape Town 2-1 in Idas Valley on Sunday.

Iqraam Rayners scored both goals for Stellies, who enjoy a five-point lead at the top of the log and look clear favourites to secure a direct move up to the top flight, while the Urban Warriors have dropped to third place and may find winning the championship a tall order given the seven points between them and the top.

Sunday’s other matches were 1-1 draws for TS Galaxy v Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila and Royal Eagles v Richards Bay.

The round opened on Friday with a goalless draw between Ubuntu Cape Town and Uthongathi FC at Athlone Stadium. The Cape side dropped to the foot of the table on Saturday when their predecessors in this regard, Witbank Spurs, claimed a 4-1 home win over Real Kings (second-from-bottom) at Puma Stadium on Saturday.

Saturday’s other results saw Mbombela United keep up their push for promotion with a comfortable 3-0 home win over Pretoria University (featuring a brace from Felix Badenhorst) which moved them into second spot, while TS Sporting picked up a valuable three points by defeating Jomo Cosmos 2-1 at Kabokweni Stadium.

The round will wrap up on Monday with Cape Umoya United v Maccabi FC, before another full set of fixtures on February 1-3.

NFD RESULTS & FIXTURES

Friday 18 January

Ubuntu Cape Town 0-0 Uthongathi

Saturday 19 January

Mbombela United 3-0 Pretoria University

TS Sporting 2-1 Jomo Cosmos

Witbank Spurs 4-1 Real Kings

Sunday 20 January

Stellenbosch 2-1 Ajax Cape Town

TS Galaxy 1-1 Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila

Royal Eagles 1-1 Richards Bay

Monday 21 January

Cape Umoya United v Maccabi FC, 15h30