The battle for the top eight in the DSTV Premiership continues on Tuesday with a couple of crucial clashes that could go a long way towards determining the final standings.
Swallows v AmaZulu
Relegation-threatened Swallows will be hoping to collect some points when they welcome top-eight contenders AmaZulu to the Dobsonville Stadium on Tuesday.
Swallows currently find themselves just outside of the drop zone in 14th place with 23 points, though 15th-placed TS Galaxy are on the same number of points and only trail on the table due to their inferior goal difference.
In other words, it’s still very much a do-or-die situation for Swallows, who will be desperate to secure their survival in the South African top-flight as the final stretch of the season arrives.
The Dube Birds are coming off a massive 3-2 victory over Baroka that gave them a much-needed three points, so they will be hoping to continue that good form.
But seventh-placed AmaZulu also have their own goals, and with Supersport United and Golden Arrows both hot on their heels, they can not afford to drop many more points if they hope to hold on to a top-eight position.
AmaZulu have been in good form of late, with two wins and a draw in their last three fixtures.
The match will also see Swallows face off against former boss Brandon Truter, who is now the interim coach of AmaZulu after getting sacked by the Dube Birds in December.
The match kicks off at 5pm.
Supersport v Stellenbosch
Another important clash in the battle for the top eight takes place on Tuesday when eight-placed Supersport host sixth-placed Stellenbosch at the Lucas Masterpieces Moripe Stadium.
Supersport will need a strong finish to the season to make sure of a top-eight place, particularly with ninth-placed Golden Arrows breathing right down their neck, level on points and only behind on goal difference.
United recently parted ways with coach Kaitano Tembo and since his assistant Andre Arendse has taken the helm, they are unbeaten. Arendse began his reign with a 1-0 victory over Kaizer Chiefs before playing to a goalless draw with Marumo Gallants.
Meanwhile, Stellenbosch find themselves in a good position in sixth place but their season could still go either way. They are only four points clear of Supersport and could still find themselves outside the top eight come the end of the campaign if they stumble down the stretch.
By the same token, however, they still have an outside chance of securing CAF football next season as they only trail third-placed Cape Town City by five points.
Steve Barker’s side have only lost two of their last 10 league matches and have proven a tough nut to crack, as evidenced by their 1-0 win over Kaizer Chiefs last time out.
“Important that we get back to zero and there’s still four games left,” said Barker. “The top eight is still our first priority. I believe we’re probably one win away from securing that and if we can and still have two of three matches left then we can even try push for higher honours.”
The match kicks off at 5pm.
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