Magesi FC’s rise from minnows to potential cup kings

Magesi FC will play a first ever cup final when they take on the might of Mamelodi Sundowns in the Carling Knockout decider at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein on Saturday, hoping to write a special piece of history. Catch all the action live on SuperSport.

The club from Limpopo will be heavy underdogs, but with 11 different winners of this competition and its predecessor, the Telkom Knockout, in the last 11 editions, this is a trophy for that has seen its fair share of final upsets in the past.

Indeed, Magesi coach Clinton Larsen was a winner in 2012 when he led Bloemfontein Celtic to a shock 1-0 win over Sundowns in the final for his only piece of major silverware as a tactician.

Larsen led Magesi to promotion to the Betway Premiership last season, which even he admitted had come as a surprise to many at the club.

When he took over the side in January 2023 they were flirting with relegation from the Motsepe Foundation Championship and looked one of the favourites for a return to the ABC Motsepe League.

He managed five wins, three draws and nine losses in the remaining league games of the 2022/23 campaign as they avoided drop by some distance in the end following the dire runs of TTM and Black Leopards.

But there was nothing to give an indication of what was to come, which would be a dominant campaign in 2023/24 that led to Magesi finishing top of the second-tier, a full eight points ahead of second-placed University of Pretoria.

They won seven games in a row in the second half of the campaign to streak clear.

Back-to-back losses in their first two Betway Premiership games this season suggested it might be a long campaign or the side in the topflight, but they have since won four and drawn three of their next seven in all competitions and are unbeaten since September.

Included in that is a shock 3-2 Carling Knockout Last 16 win over Orlando Pirates, while they have also drawn with Cape Town City (0-0) and Kaizer Chiefs (2-2) to show there is a bit of steel about this team.

Their road to the final after the Pirates success also includes away victories at TS Galaxy and Richards Bay, both hard places to go and get a win.

It is a squad with some good experience. The likes of Zimbabwe goalkeeper Elvis Chipezeze, Malawi defender Limbikani Mzava, midfielder Deolin Mekoa, a favourite of Larsen’s who has played for him at several clubs, likewise Ghana midfielder Samuel Darpoh, and forwards Rhulani Manzini and Gift Motupa.

Former Kaizer Chiefs striker Edmore Chirambadare has seen a late boost to his career after joining the club last season, while forward Wonderboy Makhubu was a chief source of goals in their promotion push in the last season with 11.

The club was founded in 2011 as Tambo FC and has the nickname of Dikwena tša Meetse (Water Crocodiles). They changed their name following promotion from the SAB Regional League to the third-tier.

The club were regular winners of the Limpopo ABC Motsepe League and won three titles in a row, but only gained promotion on the third occasion in 2015/16.

Their stay would be short-lived though as they were relegated back to the third-tier that same season, only to return in 2022/23 as they battled in what is an ultra-competitive Limpopo stream of the ABC Motsepe League.

The club first rose national attention when they entered the Nedbank Cup Last 32 in 2013, but were beaten 2-0 by Jomo Cosmos.

They were back again in 2016 and this time defeated fellow lower league side EC Bees 2-1, but were humbled 6-0 by BidVest Wits in the Last 16. They have not reached the Last 32 since.

Owner Solly Makhubela has been with the club throughout the last 13 years and a victory on Saturday would be a crowning moment for him and reward for the financial sacrifices he has made along the way.