Royal AM eye top four spot with Polokwane win

Royal AM will be targeting a spot in the Betway Premiership top four with a victory over Polokwane City when the two teams meet at the Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg on Wednesday.

Kick-off is at 7:30 pm CAT (SA, GMT+2).

CURRENT FORM

Thwihil Thwahla are brimming with confidence after recording their first win of the season when they claimed a 2-0 victory over Sekhukhune United on Saturday and it also ended their six-match winless run across all competitions.

Royal find themselves in the sixth spot in the Betway Premiership standings with seven points from six matches and a victory over Polokwane would see the KwaZulu-Natal side climb up to the top four on the table if other results go their way.

Polokwane, on the other hand, are also oozing confidence after securing an impressive 1-0 victory over local champions Mamelodi Sundowns on Sunday and the win snapped their three-match winless run across all competitions.

Rise and Shine are occupying the fourth spot in the Betway Premiership standings with 10 points from five matches and a win over Royal would elevate the Limpopo outfit into the top three if the other results go their way.

TEAM NEWS

Royal AM and Polokwane City have no suspension concerns coming into this encounter, and they are yet to report injuries in their camps.

WHAT WAS SAID?

Royal AM head coach John Maduka 

"Yeah, good win, well done to the team. I think the game itself, we started the game very, very good," Maduka said.

"We were playing one of the best teams in the country and we managed to take the game to the opponents."

Polokwane City head coach Phuti Mohafe

“Royal AM plays similarly to Sundowns, occupying similar spaces, so we will need to grind out results," Mohafe said.

“When we face them next, it’ll be different as they’ll likely have a more settled line-up.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH 

Mfundo Thikazi, Royal AM: The speedy winger is in good form at the moment having grabbed an assist against Mamelodi Sundowns before being named Man of the Match after the game against Sekhukhune United after producing an eye-catching display.

Bulelani Nikani, Polokwane City: The club captain has established himself as a goalscoring defender having netted in Polokwane's win over AmaZulu last month and he also grabbed the decisive goal against Sundowns this past weekend.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

ALL LEAGUE RESULTS (top flight only)

Season Result Scorers

2023/24 Polokwane 1-0 Royal Mabena

2023/24 Royal 3-2 Polokwane George, Mabuza, Mkhize; Mapfumo, Nikani

LEAGUE RECORD (since 2023/24)

Home

P W D L GF GA

Royal 1 1 0 0 3 2

Polokwane 1 1 0 0 1 0

Away

P W D L GF GA

Royal 1 0 0 1 0 1

Polokwane 1 0 0 1 2 3

TOTAL

P W D L GF GA

Royal 2 1 0 1 3 3

Polokwane 2 1 0 1 3 3