Proud NRB go down fighting
The home defence stood tight as the NRB boys hammered away for most of the first half, but were caught napping shortly before the break when Mpho Maruping finished well for Celtic (0-1)
RICHARDS Bay FC fought tooth and nail in their Nedbank Cup last 16 game away to Bloemfontein Celtic on Sunday.
The final 3-1 scoreline does not tell the story of how close they came to upsetting their favoured PSL opponents at the Dr Molemela Stadium.
The home defence stood tight as the NRB boys hammered away for most of the first half, but were caught napping shortly before the break when Mpho Maruping finished well for Celtic (0-1).
Richards Bay kept up the pressure after the resumption and Gregory Roelf came oh, so close with a trademark thunderous drive that shaved the woodwork.
Two late goals by Celtic and a solid strike by the ever consistent Thabiso Nkoana ended NRB’s good cup run.
Not a bad thing, as they can now centre all their attention on the National First Division, where they are just a couple of wins away from avoiding any scrap for survival as the league winds down.
It starts on Sunday when they travel to the Thohoyandou Stadium to take on TTM, who are lying third on the NFD log.
Richards Bay will take heart from the fact they drilled TTM 3-1 in the first round, despite playing much of the game with only 10 men.
A win on Sunday will do them a power of good and draw fans back in numbers at home to Jomo Cosmos on 31 March.
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