Pirates away from the base

ORLANDO Pirates elevated themselves from the base of the MTC Namibia Premiership table when they comprehensively put away Blue Waters with a 4-win yesterday, a day after they squeezed past Eleven Arrows with a 1-0 victory at the Sam Nujoma Stadium.

The Buccaneers will now safely move away from the last spot, a position which is unfamiliar to the side with one of the biggest support bases in the country. Civics extended their lead to 33 points at the top of the table, with two away wins, results that further increase their chances of retaining the championship.They first beat Oshakati City 2-1 at the Oshakati Independence Stadium on Saturday, before they were made to work extra hard in their 1-0 win against Golden Bees at the Etosha Poort Stadium in Outjo yesterday.Black Africa beat Blue Waters 3-2 on Saturday at the Sam Nujoma Stadium, while Golden Bees defeated Friends 3-2 in Outjo on Saturday.Yesterday, Stars and Ramblers played to a 0-0 draw, a result which does not augur well for Ramblers, who also drew with the same margin against SKW in a mid-week match.Friends were humiliated by Oshakati City as they fell 6-2 at the Independence Stadium at that town yesterday.Patrick Jagger was the star for his side on Saturday, as he fired a long-range shot that saw his side going past Arrows at the Sam Nujoma Stadium.Earlier, Arrows midfield genius Rudolph Bester failed to convert a penalty after Milton Nauseb brought down Robson Haitamba in the box.Pirates goalie Harry Januarie made a fantastic save as his team held onto their lead until the end.Arrows defender Chris Katjiukwa was rushed to hospital after he was knocked unconscious in a clash of heads.Black Africa’s goalkeeper Ronnie Kanalelo made a time-out block at Blue Waters striker Armando Pedro’s feet to prevent him opening the score, but that was short-lived as BA’s Donovan Swartz opened for his side instead.Gotlieb Nakuta equalised for the Birds, but second BA’s old guard Masepo Dausab extended their lead, before Pedro eventually got his to make it 2-2.Sedekia Haukambe’s confusing free-kick was the decider in the game, after the ball landed into the net as players scrambled in front of the goal.Friends team manager Murs Markus yesterday said he was disappointed by the standard of refereeing at both Oshakati and Outjo.”We received six yellow cards in today’s (Sunday) match, but the other team did not get a single card.There were so many fouls from them which went unnoticed by the referee.This is unacceptable and something needs to be done about refereeing in these places,” he said.Friends will take over from Pirates at the bottom of the table, as they have not accumulated any points and are still on 13 points.Black Africa played Eleven Arrows late yesterday, while the match between Tigers and SKW was also not completed at the time of going to press.Civics extended their lead to 33 points at the top of the table, with two away wins, results that further increase their chances of retaining the championship.They first beat Oshakati City 2-1 at the Oshakati Independence Stadium on Saturday, before they were made to work extra hard in their 1-0 win against Golden Bees at the Etosha Poort Stadium in Outjo yesterday.Black Africa beat Blue Waters 3-2 on Saturday at the Sam Nujoma Stadium, while Golden Bees defeated Friends 3-2 in Outjo on Saturday.Yesterday, Stars and Ramblers played to a 0-0 draw, a result which does not augur well for Ramblers, who also drew with the same margin against SKW in a mid-week match.Friends were humiliated by Oshakati City as they fell 6-2 at the Independence Stadium at that town yesterday.Patrick Jagger was the star for his side on Saturday, as he fired a long-range shot that saw his side going past Arrows at the Sam Nujoma Stadium.Earlier, Arrows midfield genius Rudolph Bester failed to convert a penalty after Milton Nauseb brought down Robson Haitamba in the box.Pirates goalie Harry Januarie made a fantastic save as his team held onto their lead until the end.Arrows defender Chris Katjiukwa was rushed to hospital after he was knocked unconscious in a clash of heads.Black Africa’s goalkeeper Ronnie Kanalelo made a time-out block at Blue Waters striker Armando Pedro’s feet to prevent him opening the score, but that was short-lived as BA’s Donovan Swartz opened for his side instead.Gotlieb Nakuta equalised for the Birds, but second BA’s old guard Masepo Dausab extended their lead, before Pedro eventually got his to make it 2-2.Sedekia Haukambe’s confusing free-kick was the decider in the game, after the ball landed into the net as players scrambled in front of the goal.Friends team manager Murs Markus yesterday said he was disappointed by the standard of refereeing at both Oshakati and Outjo.”We received six yellow cards in today’s (Sunday) match, but the other team did not get a single card.There were so many fouls from them which went unnoticed by the referee.This is unacceptable and something needs to be done about refereeing in these places,” he said.Friends will take over from Pirates at the bottom of the table, as they have not accumulated any points and are still on 13 points.Black Africa played Eleven Arrows late yesterday, while the match between Tigers and SKW was also not completed at the time of going to press.