AmaZulu left it late in the inaugural KwaZulu-Natal derby with Durban City FC at the Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
An 87th minute goal from Taariq Fielies proved to be the difference in a hard-fought encounter between the two Durban clubs.
On a windy afternoon in the coastal city, the first half was a lively affair, with both sides having a couple of chances on goal.
The first talking point came in the 20th minute when Usuthu looked set to take the lead after Thabiso Kutumela got on the end of a perfectly-floated cross; only for Citizens keeper Darren Keet to make a superb reflex save on the downward header from point-blank range.
Moments later Durban City had surged upfield on the counter-attack – unfortunately though there was no end product as Samkelo Maseko’s attempt to catch out Darren Johnson at the near post resulted in the goalkeeper getting down just in time to make the save.
Keet was called into action again five minutes later when Hendrick Eksteen beat the offside trap and went in on goal – once more the experienced shot-stopper came out on top as he reacted smartly to get a strong left hand on the shot from a tight angle.
At the other end, it briefly looked as if Magawana’s cross-cum-shot from 30-meters out on the left was heading for the back of the net, but it wasn’t to be as Johnson showed good reflexes to claw the ball away.
Into the second half the derby went and City weren’t far from scoring when Letsie Koapeng charged down an attempted clearance from goalkeeper Johnson, the ball rebounding a few metres wide of the target.
Koapeng had another sniff on goal in the 52nd minute – his first touch from Trevor Mokwena’s pass was sublime, but from about 16-yards out, Koapeng’s parting shot flew well the crossbar.
The game remained on a knife-edge, there for the taking as the contest moved into the final 15 minutes. It was hosts who in the end were to make the most of their opportunities as Fielies powered in a header from a free kick by Nkosikhona Radebe.
