For the first time in nearly a decade, the Betway Premiership title race is genuinely alive, and Orlando Pirates legend Lucky Lekgwathi believes his former club has the golden opportunity to finally topple Mamelodi Sundowns. The Buccaneers seized momentum with a commanding 2-0 victory over Stellenbosch FC at Athlone Stadium, and the script flipped entirely when Kaizer Chiefs held Sundowns to a 1-1 draw in Tshwane the following day. Those results have tightened the standings dramatically, with Sundowns sitting on 65 points from 28 matches while Pirates lurk just three points behind with a crucial game in hand. Lekgwathi, who captained the club to multiple titles, insists South African football desperately needed this kind of tension, pointing out that a team winning the league eight times in a row with five to seven games to spare has become stale. He recalled the high drama of his own playing days, vividly describing how the uncertainty around where the trophy would land often kept helicopter crews scrambling on the final day, and he expects this season to deliver that same nerve-shredding finish.
The former defender has no doubt that the current squad is built to handle the pressure, praising the depth assembled by chairmen Mpumi and Nkosana Khoza. Lekgwathi dismissed concerns about reliance on any single star, bluntly stating that this is not a one-man team after the club moved on several high-profile players. He has been particularly impressed by the performances of young forward Yanela Mbuthuma, who has played his heart out in recent appearances. Lekgwathi’s advice to the squad is simple: take it one game at a time. Should Pirates win their upcoming fixture on Saturday, they will pull level on points with Sundowns, creating a psychological boost that could carry them through the run-in. He does not see the Buccaneers losing any of their remaining matches based on current form, though he did offer