Durban — Nduduzo Sibiya scored a brace as Golden Arrows thumped Swallows FC 4-0 at the Princess Magogo Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
The evergreen Sibiya got things under way for the hosts early on as he won and converted a 13th-minute penalty.
The tricky winger did well to manoeuvre his way into the Swallows and was fouled by a panicky Yagan Sasman, but he thereafter dusted himself off and sent the goalkeeper Thakasani Mbanjwa the wrong way to put his side 1-0 up.
A minute later and it was the in-form Pule Mmodi who doubled the home side's advantage, capitalising on a poor mistake by Swallows goalkeeper Mbanjwa.
Mmodi grabbed his fourth goal of the 2022/2023 season when he pounced on a badly executed attempted clearance, chipping the goalkeeper and becoming the first player to score in four consecutive matches in the club's history.
The visitors piled numbers forward as they searched for a way back into the match, but it was Arrows who found the next goal in the second half through Nduduzo Sibiya in the 66th minute.
The 28-year-old midfielder finished off a well-orchestrated move as he fired from the edge of the box to score the home side's third and his second goal of the match.
The match was beginning to get ugly for the visiting Swallows as Abafana Bes'thende began to pull out the party tricks, further embarrassing their opponents with a spectacular fourth goal in the 70th minute.
The powerful box-to-box midfielder did well to control a ball with both his chest and then thigh before volleying past a helpless Mbanjwa.
A wounded Abafana Bes'thende side headed into this encounter looking to get back to winning ways following their defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns last time out.
The Arrows technical team opted for the tried-and-tested upfront as the upbeat Mmodi, Knox Mutizwa and Sibiya lined up as the front three of a 4-3-3 formation, looking to mount incredible pressure on the visitors.
The visitors Swallows approached this encounter with a low degree of confidence after making a satisfactory start into the new season, and it quickly showed as they failed to settle into the match, giving way for a quick Arrows onslaught.
The Dube Birds weren't necessarily blown away in the first stanza as they controlled 50% of the ball possession, their biggest issue being their unimaginative behaviour in the final third as they registered just a single shot on target in comparison to the Arrows’ four.
In the end, the skill and powerful arsenal of Arrows proved too much to handle for Swallows as they suffered their fourth defeat this season.
In the other 3pm kick-off, a 50-minute Ronaldo Maarman strike was enough for Chippa United to claim a 1-0 victory over Marumo Gallants, their second win in a row.
IOL Sport