Orlando Pirates claimed early season bragging rights over great Soweto rivals Kaizer Chiefs with a 1-0 win Thursday in a Vodacom Challenge play-off.
A 59th-mintue Tlou Segolela goal earned the Buccaneers a place in the final against English Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur at Ellis Park Saturday -- a repeat of the 2007 decider won 3-0 by the Londoners.
Tottenham lost 1-0 to Chiefs last Saturday in the opening match of an eight-day event bankrolled by a South African mobile telephone giant and drew 1-1 with Pirates three days later.
Spurs are guaranteed a final place as the 'guest' team despite being alone among the three contenders in not having won a match and the format has upset Chiefs Serb coach Vladimir Vermezovic.
"It is not right to have only Chiefs and Pirates fighting for a place in the final. I believe all the teams should fight for places in the final," he told reporters before the play-off.
The 12-year Challenge is popular with English Premier League clubs preparing for a new season and Manchester City and Manchester United were the last two foreign participants in the crowd-pulling tournament.
Midfielder Segolela, considered by many the fastest footballer in the South African Premiership, grabbed the winner before a capacity 40,000 crowd at Nelson Mandeala Bay Stadium on a cold night in the coastal city.
A Reuben Cloete cross was headed across goal into the path of Segolela, whose close-range shot from a tight angle flew between the legs of South Africa goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune into the net.
Segolela was voted man of the match and said the pressure was on the 2011 league and cup winners under new coach Julio Leal from Brazil to maintain the momentum with the new season a couple of weeks away.
"Winning has become part of our DNA. The match went well and it is always great to defeat our greatest rivals Kaizer Chiefs. I am lucky to play in a team of exceptional talent," he said.
Leal added: "Only in the second half did we get our quick, passing game working properly in midfield. We will train tomorrow morning and assess the fitness of the players before deciding who starts against Tottenham."
Source: AFP
