Stellies reach historic Nedbank Cup semi-final with victory over Sundowns
Stellenbosch FC has reached the semi-final of the Nedbank Cup for the first time after recording a famous victory over reigning champions Mamelodi Sundowns on Saturday.
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Iqraam Rayners’ double secured a 2-1 win for Stellies at the Athlone Stadium.
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The result sees Steve Barker’s side reach the semi-final of the Nedbank Cup for the first time.
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Right-back Kyle Jurgens enjoyed a solid full debut, having made his professional debut in the same competition earlier in the season.
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The draw for the semi-final is expected to take place on Sunday evening.
Stellies’ remarkable cup run continued at the Athlone Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday after Steve Barker’s side pulled off a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Sundowns, courtesy of a brace from in-form striker Iqraam Rayners.
RECAP | Steve Barker backs Stellies to upset Sundowns in Nedbank Cup QF
After an end-to-end opening to the match, Sundowns took the lead just before half-time through an own goal by Stellenbosch goalkeeper Lee Langeveldt, who was unfortunate to have the ball rebound off the crossbar from an Aubrey Modiba effort into his back and over the goal line.
That moment of misfortune proved to be the difference between the two sides at the interval but it was the hosts who came out stronger in the second stanza and they were rewarded shortly after the restart through the boot of Rayners.
You can watch highlights of Stellies’ famous victory in the video below
The club’s record goalscorer latched onto an errand back-pass to get in behind the Sundowns defence before rounding Masandawana ‘keeper Denis Onyango to level the scores.
That goal spurred Stellies on and Man of the Match Rayners found his second of the night, and sixth in three matches in the competition, less than ten minutes later when he capitalised on another defensive error before dinking the ball over the opposition ‘keeper.
With just over half an hour remaining on the clock, Sundowns went on the offensive and Barker’s side were made to defend manfully to maintain their lead, which they were able to do to secure progression to the semi-final of the Nedbank Cup for the first time in the club’s history.