Royal AM make history against Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies

Since the inception of SAFA’s national women league in 2019, when the original status of Bloemfontein Celtic Ladies was still in operation, they had never scored against Sundowns until the 1-0 win at the Tuks Stadium yesterday.

After some close encounters this season, signs were there that Sundowns could be beaten this season and head coach Jerry Tshabalala has given credit to his opposite bench.

"Ja, look, I did say we approached this game very, very cautiously, and I think we should have won this game in the first half," Tshabalala told SABC Sport.

"We have three to four clear-cut chances in the first half – there were two one-on-ones, where Andisiwe Mgcoyi was with the goalkeeper to beat, but it wasn't to be.

"I believe the opponents, in terms of having confidence, especially as the game progressed, that's what helped them push more. But, as I said before, they played on transition and it worked for them, and credit must go to their technical team."

Coach Delisiwe Mbatha, a Banyana Banyana legend, says a lot went into preparation for that particular performance and result.

"It was a very good game. First of all, taking nothing away from Sundowns, they are a good team and the game was good, but I'm very humbled and very proud of the Royal AM girls – they outdid themselves," she added.

"Just before we came to this game, we were talking and it was them that started by saying, 'Let's not respect them. Let's just go to them and just do everything the coaches are telling us,' and we were training hard for the entire week [before the game]. We came here ready and prepared for this game."