Securing a point lifted 12-time champions Sundowns to 58 with four matches to play, and second-placed Royal AM can reach only 57.<\/p>\n
Cape Town stretched an unbeaten league run to nine matches and remain third, boosting chances of qualifying for one of the two African club competitions next season.<\/p>\n
Sundowns and the runners-up go into the Champions League and the club finishing third qualifies for the Confederation Cup along with the FA Cup winners.<\/p>\n
Having won the early season MTN 8 knockout competition and the Premiership, Sundowns are on course for a treble as they are away to Royal on Saturday in an FA Cup semi-final.<\/p>\n
“It was nice to wrap up the title in front of our supporters,” said Sundowns co-coach Rulani Mokwena. “We missed them so much when they were barred from stadiums for two years due to Covid-19 restrictions.<\/p>\n
“Winning would have been nicer, but there was no lack of effort from our boys tonight. City have not lost this year and proved very resolute opponents.<\/p>\n
“Five league titles in a row is an incredible achievement and the secret of our success is that everyone at the club works together, from the chairman down.”<\/p>\n
– ‘Well organised defensively’ –<\/p>\n
Cape Town coach Eric Tinkler said they came to Pretoria hoping to “spoil Sundowns’ party by securing all three points”.<\/p>\n
“We were extremely well organised defensively, which you have to be to contain a team with the attacking flair of Sundowns. The teams cancelled each other out.”<\/p>\n
City can narrow the gap behind Royal to a single point if they win away to off-form Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday in Johannesburg.<\/p>\n
In a match of few clearcut chances, Sundowns came closest when Rushine de Reuck won an aerial duel with Angolan goalkeeper Hugo Marques and nodded just over.<\/p>\n
Mduduzi Mdantsane nearly put City ahead early in the second half when he controlled the ball and turned superbly in the goalmouth only to blaze wide.<\/p>\n
In Durban, fifth-placed Chiefs suffered a third straight loss when surrendering the lead in a 2-1 defeat to mid-table Golden Arrows.<\/p>\n
Zimbabwean Khama Billiat gave Chiefs an early lead before substitutes Siboniso Conco and Michael Gumede netted for Arrows in the final 30 minutes.<\/p>\n
It was only the third time in 17 attempts that Arrows had won at home against Chiefs, who sacked English coach Stuart Baxter last week as a trophy-less run extended to seven seasons.<\/p>\n
Orlando Pirates climbed one place to fourth despite only drawing 0-0 at home to relegation-threatened Chippa United in a scrappy Soweto match.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mamelodi Sundowns sealed a record-extending fifth consecutive South African Premiership title on Wednesday, despite a 0-0 draw at home to Cape Town City in Pretoria.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12963,"featured_media":7189,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,4],"tags":[7,14,39],"class_list":{"0":"post-7192","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment","8":"category-sports","9":"tag-apie-project","10":"tag-entertainment","11":"tag-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n