Kaizer Chiefs begin a new chapter in their history this Sunday when they host Maritzburg United in a league game to be played at Vodacom Loftus in Tshwane (Pretoria), as they have had to vacate the FNB Stadium as the stadium gets an upgrade with the 2010 FIFA World Cup looming. By the time the FNB Stadium’s renovations have been completed, Chiefs will have in all likelihood have moved into their new The Amakhosi home in the Mogale City municipality West of Johannesburg.

As Chiefs prepare to take up residency in the capital city for the rest of the season, their first task will be to over come a Maritzburg United team who will be out to over turn their recent string of loses in the PSL. As united came unstuck last Wednesday against Golden Arrows, in a match played as a curtain raiser to Chiefs two nil victory over Amazulu in Durban. This past Sunday United again came undone as Moroka Swallows defeated them at home, succumbing them to their fourth straight league defeat in the last month.

Overview

Within the first month of the 2005 – 2006 the cash laden business conglomerate which owns Maritzburg United who were in the Mvela Golden League at the time, made a bid for and purchased PSL outfit Tembisa Classic and renamed them Maritzburg United and moved the team out of the East Rand of Gauteng to Kwa Zulu Natal. They subsequently sold their first division franchise to Volkswagen South Africa, who renamed the team and they moved off to the Eastern Cape.

During the 2005 – 2006 season Chiefs faced United there was a period when Chiefs faced United twice in under a week, the first clash between the two teams last season was a Coca Cola Cup tie, played on the 22nd October 2005 in sweltering heat in Rustenburg. The Amakhosi won what was a closely contested game 2-1 thanks to goals from Fabian McCarthy and John Shoes Moshoeu. Four days later the teams met again in Rustenburg, this time in a league game, which ended in a goalless draw.

Maritzburg though did manage to cause an upset in the return league encounter last season played at the now demolished Kings Park soccer stadium in Durban, this past April as they ultimately put an end to Chiefs title aspirations with a 1-0 victory over The Amakhosi. Although Chiefs dominated proceedings, Dingaan Mabalane’s 48th minute strike was enough to win the points for Maritzburg and it was a result, which ultimately helped them avoid relegation.

Current form

There can be no doubting the fact that Chiefs are an improving team and after having to wait into the third month of the new campaign, to register their first win in 2006 – 2007, which was away from home against Golden Arrows at the start of October. Chiefs have been able to shrug of their slow start and have put together a run of results which have seen them bag ten points of a possible twelve in their last four league games.

Amakhosi coach Ernst Middendorp is well aware of the fact that it will be to the peril of his team should they underestimate the potential danger they face in Kosta Papic’s team. The Chiefs coaches’ objective at present is for his team to play themselves into the kind of position, where they will have cut down the gap between themselves and the front-runners in the league. Middendorp also believes that Maritzburg won’t take things lying down on Sunday, and as a result has been labouring hard with his team to ensure that they fight all the way for a win on Sunday.

While Chiefs star has begun to shine brightly in recent times Maritzburg United have begun to dim, much to the unhappiness of coach Kosta Papic whose team have recently suffered back to back defeats at the hands of Lamontville Golden Arrows and Moroka Swallows.

With four defeats and one victory in their last five games Kosta Papic will not need to motivate his team for this encounter, as they demonstrated earlier in the season. When they defeated Papic’s former team Orlando Pirates by a solitary goal back in September, and in late November they gave Mamelodi Sundowns a fright when they fought all the way with the current PSL Champions before narrowly going down 2-1. Their performances against Pirates and Sundowns are an indication that Papic and his players particularly enjoy playing against the so-called big teams and they live for the moments when they throw off course the bookmakers favourites.

Dangermen

After his injury time heroics on Saturday against Orlando Pirates Shaun Bartlett has won new found popularity amongst the Chiefs fans, his goal against Pirates was his third in as many PSL matches. The former Bafana Bafana hit men has played himself into form which bodes well for Chiefs, as he will be looking to add to the four goals he has scored this season, against Maritzburg in the capital on Sunday.

Along with Bartlett Ernst Middendorp will be hoping for more of the same kind of tenacity and unforgiving approach Tinashe Nengomasha, which helped make life difficult for Pirates this past weekend. The 2003 – 2004 PSL player of the year has been showing the same kind of form - which won him the award as the top player in the league three seasons ago.

While Kosta Papic’s team might not have had the best of results in recent games, they do possess a number of highly skilled and talented individuals, top of the list will be former Orlando Pirates midfielder Steve Lekoelea. The way ward Lekoelea does possess the class and experience to turn on the pressure and from his time with Pirates has shown that he turns on the style whenever he plays against Chiefs.

Also central to the success of Papic’s team on Sunday will be the kind of form shown by the dangerous Sandile Ndlovu, currently on loan to United from PSL Champions Mamelodi Sundowns. Ndlovu other wise known as AK47 has fired in four goals in his short stint at United so far, he remains the greatest threat to Chiefs and will make The Amakhosi defence work over time on Sunday.

Maritzburg United Fact

The current Maritzburg United team consists of three former Kaizer Chiefs players in the form of defender Ivan Winstanley, midfielder Calvin Sosibo and striker Kabamba Musasa a league winner with Chiefs in the 2003 – 2004 season. United’s thirteen league goals this season have been scored by no less than ten players with nine players contributing with a single goal, while striker Sandile Ndlovu has found the back of the net on four occasions this term.

Chiefs Vs Maritzburg United results since 2005 – 2006

26th October 2005


Kaizer Chiefs 0 Maritzburg United 0

2nd April 2006


Maritzburg United 1 Kaizer Chiefs 0

Chiefs Vs Maritzburg United head to head since 2005 – 2006

	P	W	L	D	GF	GA	GD
Kaizer Chiefs	2	0	1	1	1	2	-1
Maritzburg United	2	1	0	1	2	1	1

Last five league results

Kaizer Chiefs

8th November, Bloemfontein Celtic 2 Kaizer Chiefs 0

11th November, Kaizer Chiefs 2 Moroka Swallows 0

25th November, Black Leopards 1 Kaizer Chiefs 3

6th December, Amazulu 0 Kaizer Chiefs 2

9th December Kaizer Chiefs 1 Orlando Pirates 1

Maritzburg United

8th November, Maritzburg United 3 Jomo Cosmos 2

11th November, Ajax Cape Town 2 Maritzburg United 0

26th November, Maritzburg United 1 Mamelodi Sundowns 2

6th December, Lamontville Golden Arrows 2 Maritzburg United 1

9th December, Maritzburg United 1 Moroka Swallows 2

Head to head Chiefs and United last five league games

	P	W	L	D	GF	GA	GD	PTS
Kaizer Chiefs	5	3	1	1	8	4	4	10
Maritzburg United	5	1	4	0	6	10	-4	3