Nedbank Cup – all you need to know

The Nedbank Cup last 32 draw has thrown up the potential for a number of upsets and the chance for players from the amateur ranks to write their name into South African football folklore.

Here is a brief guide to the 16 matches in the first round of South Africa’s most prestigious knockout competition.

MAMELODI SUNDOWNS VS RICHARDS BAY

7 February, 2023 – Loftus Stadium (19h30)

Defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns will have a sense of déjà vu after they defeated Richards Bay 4-0 in the Last 32 on their way to lifting the title last season.Back then the KwaZulu-Natal side were in the second tier but gained promotion at the end of the campaign and have acquitted themselves very well in the topflight.In fact, these two sit first and second respectively in the top flight, so this is a top-of-the-table cup clash! They have already met in the league, with Sundowns claiming a 2-0 away victory.

MARUMO GALLANTS VS MAGESI FC

7 February, 2023 – Royal Bafokeng Stadium (19h30)

A Limpopo Derby, Gallants have appeared in the final of the Nedbank Cup in the last two years, winning in 2021 (as TTM) and losing to Mamelodi Sundowns last year. They can now chase a unique hat-trick. Magesi previously appeared in the last 32 in 2013 and 2016, making the second round on the latter occasion before a chastening 6-0 loss to BidVest Wits. They were a third-tier side on that occasion but are now in the Motsepe Foundation Championship.

SUPERSPORT UNITED VS DONDOL STARS

8 February, 2023 – Lucas Moripe Stadium (19h30)

A Tshwane Derby between three-time winners SuperSport United and Mamelodi-based amateur side Dondol Stars, provides the prospect of a David v Goliath giant-killing act. SuperSport had never lost to lower league opposition before being ousted from the Nedbank Cup by second-tier TTM last season, though since then they have re-hired coach Gavin Hunt. Hunt was a Nedbank Cup winner with Matsatsantsa in 2012 and actually made three finals in a row, losing with SuperSport to Kaizer Chiefs in 2013 and with BidVest Wits to Orlando Pirates in 2014.

SEKHUKHUNE UNITED VS LIVER BROTHERS

8 February, 2023 – Peter Mokaba Stadium (19h30)

Liver Brothers are the only side from the fourth tier of South African football competing in the Nedbank Cup Last 32 this year and will hope to emulate Vaal University of Technology, who ousted Lamontville Golden Arrows on penalties in 2020. Sekhukhune have looked improved since the arrival of coach Brandon Truter and are hoping to avoid a third successive Last 32 defeat, having never won a match in the competition.

CAPE TOWN SPURS VS BAROKA FC

10 February, 2023 – Athlone Stadium (15h00)

Cape Town Spurs are improving under the experienced coaching duo of Shaun Bartlett and Nasief Morris and will provide a big test for three-time Nedbank Cup semifinalists Baroka FC. It was not so long ago this was a top flight fixture, but both clubs now find themselves in the MFC and bidding for promotion back to the big time. They have yet to meet in the league this season as their January 7 encounter was postponed, but this is a repeat of the 2021 Nedbank Cup Last 32 game where Spurs came out on top.

MARITZBURG UNITED VS KAIZER CHIEFS

10 February, 2023 – Harry Gwala Stadium (19h30)

Kaizer Chiefs may welcome the fact they have avoided a lower league opponent such has been the regularity with which they have been beaten by teams in the divisions below them over the years. Chiefs are looking to avoid a hattrick of first-round exits in the Nedbank Cup as they strive for a first trophy win since 2015, already a club record wait for silverware. They last lifted this particular trophy in 2013. Maritzburg were Nedbank Cup runners-up in 2018 but have not made it past the second round in the other seven years since they reached the semifinals in 2014.

LAMONTVILLE GOLDEN ARROWS VS PRETORIA CALLIES

11 February, 2023 – Princess Magogo Stadium (15h00)

Both these teams have been Nedbank Cup semifinals fairly recently, but Callies also have Motsepe Foundation Championship (MFC) survival on their minds as they struggle near the bottom of the second-tier. Golden Arrows have been knocked out of the Nedbank Cup in the Last 32 in the previous three seasons, including by fourth-tier Vaal University of Technology (2020) and second-tier TTM (2022). They might have preferred to meet a team they know more about.

FC BLACKCROSS VS VENDA FOOTBALL ACADEMY

11 February, 2023 – Dr Molemela Stadium (15h00)

Free State amateurs FC BlackCross will be relishing bringing Venda Football Academy to Botshabelo and fancy their chances of an upset win. They are debuting in the competition this year, while Venda made the second round in their first showing last season but lost on penalties to University of Pretoria after a thrilling 3-3 draw. By the start of 2023, BlackCross had a near-perfect record in the third tier with 28 points from a possible 30 in the league and their maiden Nedbank Cup qualification.

STELLENBOSCH FC VS SWALLOWS FC

11 February, 2023 – Athlone Stadium (15h00)

This all-Premiership clash between two sides who tend to blow hot and cold is a difficult one to read, but with just a single victory in their last six Nedbank Cup games, the signs are not good for Stellenbosch. The head-to-head record between the sides mostly contains draws, with four out of the five past meetings. Stellenbosch won 2-1 when the teams met in the league in September to break that run.

MPHENI HOME DEFENDERS VS CLAREWOOD FC

11 February, 2023 – Thohoyandou Stadium (15h00)

This battle between two ABC Motsepe League sides ensures we will have at least one team from the Safa structures in the last 16. Both make their debut at this stage of the competition and will be seeking to carry some excellent league form into the fixture. Home Defenders are from Limpopo, while Clarewood must travel the breadth of the country from their Cape Town base.

ALL STARS FC VS ORLANDO PIRATES

11 February, 2023 – BidVest Stadium (20h00)

Pirates have already lifted the MTN8 this season so are chasing a second trophy and standing in their way in the last 32 is MFC side All Stars, who have settled in well since their relocation from Cape Town to Gauteng. Pirates have only lost once to lower league opposition, a shock 4-1 defeat to third-tier Maluti FET College in 2013, but have just one quarterfinal showing in the last five Nedbank Cup following back-to-back finals defeats in 2016 and 2017.

AMAZULU VS TORNADO FC

12 February, 2023 – King Goodwill Zwelithini Stadium (15h00)

AmaZulu have been to one cup final this year in the MTN8 and that will have given them the taste for more as they prepare to face Northern Cape ABC Motsepe League side Tornado FC. The Upington team is not to be confused with the now-defunct club of the same name from the Eastern Cape who appeared in the Nedbank Cup in 2015 and 2019. This Tornado are making their debut and might fancy their chance of an upset against an Usuthu side who have not been past the second round of the Nedbank Cup since they were semifinalists in 2012.

TS GALAXY VS AMAVARARA

12 February, 2023 – BidVest Stadium (15h00)

TS Galaxy will host this Nedbank Cup clash against third-tier side Amavarara in the unfamiliar surrounds of the BidVest Stadium in Johannesburg, a long way from their traditional home of the Mbombela Stadium. Galaxy have been giant-killers in this competition before, not least when they were 2019 winners, beating Kaizer Chiefs in the final, still the only second-tier side to lift the trophy. Galaxy have only ever lost once outright in the Nedbank Cup, when they were defeated 3-0 by Chippa United in the Last 32 in 2020.

MKHAMBATHI FC VS CASRIC STARS

12 February, 2023 – Harry Gwala Stadium (15h00)

KwaZulu-Natal ABC Motsepe League side Mkhambathi FC might have been hoping for a bigger fish in the last 32 but will find Casric Stars a tough proposition. Their opponents were born out of the ashes of Free State Stars, who were Nedbank Cup winners in 2018, and have Ea Lla Koto legend Paulus Masehe as their co-coach. Stars have been the form team in the second tier over the last six or seven games and are flying high in the league.

CAPE TOWN CITY VS ROYAL AM

12 February, 2023 – Cape Town Stadium (18h00)

These two sides will know each other inside out. Not only did they meet in the last 32 of the Nedbank Cup in Durban in 2022, where Royal AM were 2-1 winners, but they also met a few weeks ago in the league. City ran out 2-1 home victors on that occasion. They have played each other four times, with City leading the head-to-head 2-1 and a single draw, which came in Cape Town last April. Both sides will have a real eye on the trophy and see the Nedbank Cup as a realistic chance to bring in silverware.

POLOKWANE CITY VS CHIPPA UNITED

14 February, 2023 – Old Peter Mokaba Stadium (19h30)

The final match in the round between one of the frontrunners in the MFC and a Chippa United side that have been up and down this season. Chippa were beaten Nedbank Cup finalists in 2021, the closest they have come to lifting the trophy though they have been to three semifinals in all since 2017 and clearly enjoy this competition. They exited at the hands of second-tier University of Pretoria in the Last 32 last year and will hope there is no repeat against Polokwane City.

BIG UPSETS

Ikapa Sporting 3-2 Bloemfontein Celtic

Platinum Stars 2-3 Als Puk Tawana

Maluti FET College 4-1 Orlando Pirates

United FC 3-2 Chippa United

Kaizer Chiefs 1-2 Richards Bay

RECORD TOP SCORER

11 GOALS – HLOMPHO KEKANA

Club: Mamelodi Sundowns

Kekana is the leading scorer in the Nedbank Cup since 2008, having netted all his goals in the colours of Sundowns. He too made hay in the 24-0 success against Powerlines FC, netting seven goals in that game alone, but had to wait three years for his next strike in the 3-1 win over Platinum Stars in 2015. He scored two more for the club in 2018 and got his final Nedbank Cup goal in a 4-1 success against Orlando Pirates in 2021. The following season he announced his retirement from the game but has certainly etched his name in the history of the Nedbank Cup!

CHASING GOALS RECORD

9 GOALS – KERMIT ERASMUS

Clubs: SuperSport United, Orlando Pirates, Mamelodi Sundowns

Erasmus is back at Orlando Pirates for a second spell this season and will be hoping to add to his Nedbank Cup tally, which includes goals in the final. His first in the competition came for SuperSport United in their 3-1 win over Lamontville Golden Arrows in the Last 32 in 2011 and he netted four in all for Matsatsantsa, including in the 2012 final as they lifted the trophy. He moved on to Pirates and scored three for them in the 2014 campaign as they defeated BidVest Wits 3-1 in the final, with Erasmus on the scoresheet twice. After a spell in France, he signed for Mamelodi Sundowns and last year got a brace as they thumped Summerfield Dynamos 5-0 in the quarterfinals on their way to lifting the trophy. Since then he has returned to Pirates.

9 GOALS – LEHLOHONOLO MAJORO

Clubs: AmaZulu, Kaizer Chiefs

Majoro has had a long and distinguished career to date and still turns out for AmaZulu, so may not yet be done in this competition. He burst onto the scene with Usuthu in the 2010-11 season and opened his Nedbank Cup account on his debut in the competition when he scored in the 5-0 victory over Real Madrid (not that Real Madrid!). He grabbed two in all that year. He moved on to Kaizer Chiefs the following season and managed four Nedbank Cup goals in a single game against Black Leopards. He also scored in the semifinals the following year as Chiefs lifted the trophy in 2013. He later had so-so spells with Orlando Pirates, Cape Town City and BidVest Wits before returning to AmaZulu in 2019 and adding one more Nedbank Cup goal to his tally.

9 GOALS – PETER SHALULILE

Clubs: Highlands Park, Mamelodi Sundowns

The most lethal marksman in South Africa at present, Shalulile has raced to nine Nedbank Cup goals and might have had many more had he not been rested by Mamelodi Sundowns in a succession of games against minnows last season. His first Nedbank Cup goals came for Highlands Park against Uthongathi in 2019 when he got a brace and then one more that year versus Kaizer Chiefs. He moved to Sundowns the following season and scored four times in the competition. He only played three times last year as Sundowns romped to the title but scored against Richards Bay and in the final versus Marumo Gallants to take his overall tally to nine. Can he become the outright top scorer this year?

7 GOALS - BRADLEY GROBLER

Clubs: Platinum Stars, SuperSport United

Veteran forward Grobler turned 35 this week but is still banging in the goals for SuperSport United in the top flight. He has a long and successful history with the Nedbank Cup, having netted once in the 2016 final and then twice in the 2017 decider as Matsatsantsa beat Orlando Pirates two years in a row. That brace six years ago was his last two goals in the competition though. His first came for Platinum Stars against Lamontville Golden Arrows all the way back in 2009!

Nedbank Cup winners & finals appearances since 2008

WINS FINALS

Mamelodi Sundowns 4 5

SuperSport United 3 4

Orlando Pirates 2 4

Marumo Gallants 1 2

Free State Stars 1 1

Moroka Swallows 1 1

TS Galaxy 1 1

Kaizer Chiefs 1 2

Wits University 1 2

Ajax Cape Town 0 1

AmaZulu 0 1

Black Leopards 0 1

Bloemfontein Celtic 0 1

Chippa United 0 1

Maritzburg United 0 1

Mpumalanga Black Aces 0 1

University of Pretoria 0 1

*TS Galaxy were in the National First Division when they lifted the 2019 Nedbank Cup

All winners by province

41 – Gauteng

4 – Western Cape

2 – Mpumalanga, Free State

1 – Limpopo

Nedbank Cup winners by province since 2008

12 – Gauteng

1 – Mpumalanga, Free State, Limpopo

Nedbank Cup final venues since 2008

2008 - Johannesburg Stadium

2009 - Rand Stadium

2010 - Soccer City

2011 - Mbombela Stadium

2012 - Orlando Stadium

2013 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2014 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2015 - Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium

2016 - Peter Mokaba Stadium

2017 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2018 - Cape Town Stadium

2019 - Moses Mabhida Stadium

2020 - Orlando Stadium

2021 - Free State Stadium

2022 - Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace