Frustration continues for McCarthy as AmaZulu draw once more against Royal AM

Benni McCarthy’s frustration of not seeing his AmaZulu winning the games they dominate continued at the bucketing Moses Mabhida Stadium on Saturday when the they played a DStv Premiership 0-0 draw against neighbours Royal AM.

That was Usuthu’s ninth stalemate of the season in 14 DStv Premiership matches.

The KwaZulu-Natal derby failed to live up to its prematch hype in which both teams’ bosses, Sandile Zungu of AmaZulu and Shaun Mkhize of Royal, had promised football fans watching from home fireworks.

So poor was the first half that Royal failed to have a single shot on target while AmaZulu had their New Zealand striker Andre De Jong looking sharper, as he tested Royal goalkeeper Patrick Nyame a few times.

AmaZulu continued to dominate the game in the second half but again they could not beat Royal’s Cameroonian goalkeeper Patrick Nyame, who pulled off two exceptional saves to deny Luvuyo Memela and De Jong before the hour mark.

Thembela Sikhakhane should have given McCarthy’s side the lead in the 77th minute after managing to round Nyame, but he failed to plant the ball into an empty net.

Royal usually take long to warm up and get into a better gear. But once they did in the last 30 minutes they gave Usuthu a few anxious moments that resulted in the home side’s skipper, Makhehlene Makhaula, and Tapelo Xoki being booked for dangerous fouls on AM’s speedy attackers.

The draw is not a bad result for Royal as it moved John Maduka’s side second on goal difference on the log with 22 points after 13 outings.

But for McCarthy, the formidable and all-time leading scorer for Bafana Bafana, the pressure is still on as his side remain in top of the bottom half with 18 points, 12 away from runaway leaders Mamelodi Sundowns.