MATSHELANE MAMABOLO
ORLANDO Pirates defenders beware: Lehlohonolo Mojela is in a rich vein of scoring form and is coming your way this weekend with every intention to help Stellenbosch FC win the MTN8 title.
It can be argued that of all the marquee signings of the new 2024/25 season, Mojela has been the most effective since joining the Cape Winelands team from TS Galaxy. Mojela has found the opposition net in every second match for Stellies, the man with the peroxide-coloured hair scoring against Polokwane City, Vita Club, Hotspurs and Mamelodi Sundowns.
Recovery with a view 🌄 pic.twitter.com/lLexANTIGQ
Coach Steve Barker is delighted that his new signing has hit the ground running.
“He is getting on the scoresheet, scoring some really good goals and tonight’s was a really quality goal,” he said after the 1-1 draw at City on Sunday evening.
“So, ja ... it is nice that he is scoring and playing with a lot of confidence. He is a handful for any team.
“He has a lot of energy, a lot of movement, a lot of pressing and adding goals to that. He is a formidable player for us.”
“It is an occasion to the go the final in a full stadium and I am sure our motivation will be high to perform better than what we did this evening.”
Barker took a risk with Mojela at the weekend, keeping him on the field even after he’d been shown a yellow card.
“He had been booked earlier in the game so it was a little risky to leave him (on) because if he gets booked again (he gets sent off and misses the final). But ja, I am happy for him.”
With the Polokwane City game out of the way, Stellenbosch will now turn their attention to preparing for the final at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in on Saturday. Though sure to be outnumbered in the stands, they will still feel at home at a venue they used earlier on where they had some good results.
Stellies beat eSwatini’s Hotspurs in both legs of their CAF Confederation Cup first round there and then secured their spot in the MTN8 final by beating Sundowns 1-0 at the Durban venue.
“Our mentality is to just see the game before us, but obviously it is an occasion to the go the final in a full stadium and I am sure our motivation will be high to perform better than what we did this evening.
“Getting a point is not the worst for us. We’ll take the point and reflect and make sure we are a little better in certain areas before in the final.”
The one area that he can rest assured needs no improving is Mojela’s scoring form. The man is on fire and you can bet on him to bring it on against a Pirates side looking to complete an unprecedented hat-trick of Top 8 titles.
The Bucs defence has been warned.