GOLDEN ARROWS VS BIDVEST WITS | ABSA

Competition: Absa Premiership
Date: Sunday, 17 October 2009
Venue: Chatsworth Stadium
Kick-off: 15:30

Lamontville Golden Arrows and Bidvest Wits played to an exciting 3-3 draw at a cold and wet Chatsworth Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

The visitors showed they are a force to be reckoned, clawing their way back after trailing 3-1 in the second half, to salvage a point and keep their unbeaten record intact.

For Arrows it was their eighth draw in league action which may haunt them later on in the season.

The visitors settled quickly and wasted no time in testing the agility of Thulasizwe Khuzwayo in the Arrows goals. First, Sibusiso Vilakazi let rip with a well struck drive from twenty metres out which produced an acrobatic save from Khuzwayo.

Two minutes later, the keeper was at full stretch in response to Mark Haskins’ snap shot from a set-piece.

But Arrows, who are well known for their enterprising counter-attacking play, opened the scoring in the 11th minute with a trademark breakaway goal. Nhlanhla Zothwane collected a defensive clearance and laid a precision pass into the path of the lightening-quick Richard Henyekane who responded by pulling away from his marker and finishing with aplomb.

The home side doubled their lead on the half-hour mark when Wits keeper Francis Chansa spilled Henyekane’s long range strike, allowing winger Njabulo Mnqana to stab home from close range. Wits responded almost immediately when defender Justin Miller headed past Khuzwayo from a Sifiso Myeni free-kick just outside the Arrows goal area.

The action continued to flow from end to end in the second half as both teams went in search of more goals. Khuzwayo did well to keep out Haskins’ scorching drive from just outside the Arrows goal area in the 52nd minute.

Some neat inter-play between Arrows players, Francis Kombe, Henyekane and Zothwane ended with the latter restoring the home side’s two goal cushion in the 58th minute with a well drilled shot.

The never-say-die Wits pulled one back when Haskins headed Themba Shabalala’s cross, five minutes later.

Then, second half substitute Thando Mngomeni unleashed a thunderous shot from the edge of Arrows penalty area which Khuzwayo could only parry onto the upright. Myeni made no mistake steering the rebounding shot into an empty Arrows net as the visitors breathed a sigh of relief as they secured the 3-3- draw.