After their ‘icebreaker’ of a 0-0 draw with UWC on Monday, Wits captain Fhulufelani Munyai expects his team to make a step up.
Munyai was crowned FNB Man of the Match and he explained that while he appreciated being recognized, he was not happy as they did not play as well as they had hoped as a team.
The Johannesburg side claimed a single point from their return Varsity Football match in front of an enthusiastic crowd, but Munyai knows they will have to raise their game against NMMU who are another team that has played in every season of Varsity Football.
“It wasn’t easy to play against a team that has been playing for the past three editions of the tournament, icebreakers are always hard but I hope next game we’re gonna win,” he said.
UWC Captain Reon October was crowned Samsung Super Striker after making some brilliant saves for his team.
“We are very happy with the one point, it was an away game, we would have been more happy with the three points but it didn’t happen for us today,” he said.
The first 15 minutes of the game was heavily dominated by the Wits side with most of the play being concentrated in the UWC half of the pitch.
October had his work cut out for him with the combination of Wits’ Wonderboy Frank and Neo Makua constantly taking chances at the goal. None of these efforts were successful though, as the players went over the cross bar and wide with their shots.
This trend continued throughout the first half of the game, much to the frustration of Wits coach Karabo Mogudi and the fans in attendance.
UWC were not to be outdone, taking every opportunity to shake things up. Tapelo Sixishe, who displayed some fancy footwork from time to time, and Ayanda Nkunkwana were some of the players that took their shot at goal but Wits goalie Brylon Petersen stood firm.
The second half was much better for the visitors who dominated the game. It was in the 55th minute when Nkunkwana attempted to shock Petersen with a shot that was sure to be a goal but Petersen showed why he is Wits’ number one taking that shot in his stride.
Captain Munyai was an instrumental player for Wits particularly in the second half when he helped move the ball out of the Wits half into the UWC half. He gave a number of good assists that led to some amazing chances that were not converted to goals.
The game became hotly contested in the last 10 minutes with both sides trying desperately to score that elusive goal, in order to walk away with the three points. Even with the referee’s two minutes added, this was not meant to be.
The electric atmosphere at the stadium served as the perfect backdrop to a thrilling encounter between the two sides. Wits will meet NMMU Madibaz on the 27th July at home at 6pm and the University of the Western Cape will battle it out with UP-Tuks at the UWC Sports Stadium also on the 27th.
By Masego Panyane
