Durban — Swallows FC blew a two-goal lead before edging an entertaining Premiership encounter 3-2 with a late penalty against Cape Town City at Dobsonville Stadium on Tuesday.
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The match was briefly disrupted prior to kick-off with unfamiliar drama as City filed a motion to play the match under protest as Swallows fielded new signing Kwanda Mngonyama from the start, but listed him as a substitute on the team sheet.
The Dube Birds took a surprising lead in the 16th minute through new man Waseem Isaacs, following a spell of pressure by City.
Tshediso Patjie and Abel Zulu combined very well before floating a cross to Isaacs in the box, the former Stellenbosch FC player excellently evaded his man in the penalty area before leaping and placing his header into the top corner, leaving Hugo Marques in goal at a standstill.
Swallows were in dreamland a few moments later as one turned into two in the 23rd minute, Patjie again in the thick of things.
The 31-year-old attacking midfielder played a neat one-two with fellow new signing Siboniso Mtshali before drilling his low effort past a diving Marques between the visitors’ posts.
Venezuela international Darwin Gonzalez gave City a lifeline as he pulled one back in the 31st minute.
Gonzalez and Khanyisa Mayo had been thorns in the Swallows defence throughout the first half, and it was no surprise when Mayo played his partner through before he rounded the goalkeeper and slotted into an empty goal.
Mayo has displayed great maturity since being thrust into the spotlight by coach Eric Tinkler, and it was only fitting that he grabbed the equaliser for City in the 62nd minute.
The lively 23-year-old needed two attempts to beat Thakasani Mbanjwa after the shot-stopper parried his initial header, but it fell to Mayo again, who placed it beyond Mbanjwa as he scrambled on the floor.
Second-half substitute Siboniso Mtshali came off the bench to convert a 93rd-minute penalty.
The 27-year-old sent Marques the wrong way after Marc van Heerden was adjudged to have held him in the penalty area, handing Swallows the chance to claim victory.
Tinkler tampered a little with his starting XI, making just three changes to the team that lost their opening match of the campaign.
Captain Taariq Fielies, Kajally Drammeh and Patrick Fisher came into the fold, with Van Heerden, Mduduzi Mdantsane and young Luke Daniels making way as Tinkler looked for a different approach this time around.
The match was played at a frantic pace as both teams had the opportunity to dominate possession and dictate play.
Swallows had an exceptional first half-an-hour before City took over as they looked to work their way back into the match.
The two teams seemed to settle for a draw as the game wound down, both of them not looking to lose a valuable first point of the season.
City will have an opportunity to finally register their first win of the season when they visit AmaZulu at the weekend, while Swallows travel to KwaZulu-Natal for a trip to Maritzburg United.
IOL Sport