Orlando Pirates cruise past Milford FC into Carling Knockout quarter-finals

Orlando Pirates began their Carling Knockout title defence with a convincing 3-0 win over Milford FC at the Orlando Amstel Arena on Tuesday evening.

The victory sent the Buccaneers into the quarter-finals after a dominant performance against the Stallions, who were unable to repeat the result they wanted after losing to Pirates on the opening day.

Pirates entered the match looking for a strong start to their defence of the competition after reaching the CAF Champions League group stages. They had suffered only one defeat all season before facing Milford.

The home side applied pressure from the outset, disrupting Milford’s attempts to build from the back. They took the lead in the 16th minute when Tshepang Moremi played a through ball into the path of Thapelo Mokobodi, who calmly rolled his finish into the bottom corner.

Pirates came close to adding a second before the half-hour mark. Evidence Makgopa cut inside the penalty area and shaped to shoot, but Milford goalkeeper Siphamandla Hleza reacted well to palm the effort away.

The pressure eventually told again with 10 minutes remaining before half-time. A neat passing move released Moremi into space on the inside-left channel, and he beat the advancing Hleza before finishing from an acute angle.

With Pirates in control, they made a change five minutes before the interval, replacing Ghampani Lungu with Mpho Padime.

The hosts then stretched their advantage on the stroke of half-time. Moremi timed his run to beat the offside trap, rounded Hleza and calmly finished to complete his brace and give Pirates a 3-0 lead.

Milford make changes but Pirates remain in control

Milford made four substitutions at half-time in an effort to improve their display, bringing on Sicelo Masilela, Mnqobi Mbhele, Vusumuzi Mthabela and Thabana Mabena.

Pirates, however, continued to dominate and almost scored a fourth shortly after the restart. Moremi advanced down the left and cut the ball back towards the far post, where Padime side-footed his attempt wide.

The Stallions later enjoyed a brief spell of momentum and created their first clear sight of goal when substitute Mthabela moved into the area. Sipho Chaine, though, made the save required to preserve Pirates’ clean sheet.

Pirates remained the more threatening side despite their comfortable advantage. In the closing quarter, Mokobodi escaped the offside trap and struck a first-time effort over the crossbar.

The Buccaneers continued to look for further goals during the final minutes, but poor finishing from their forwards prevented them from extending the scoreline. Milford could not take advantage of those missed opportunities, and Pirates completed their progress to the Carling Knockout quarter-finals.