By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
@GalloImages.
Orlando Pirates secured a crucial 1-0 victory over African Stars in their CAF Champions League first leg match in Gaborone, Botswana on Saturday afternoon.
Pirates visited the Samba Boys at the Botswana National Stadium after the Namibian side decided to host the match in Gaborone.
Samba Boys don’t have a stadium that meets the standards for hosting CAF matches.
The Buccaneers find themselves in the CAFCL second preliminary round after eliminating Mauritius side La Cure Waves 3-1 on aggregate. A win or draw in this tie will book a spot in the CAFCL group stages.
The match went into the half-time break deadlocked at goalless, with Pirates having it all to do in the second half to secure a win away from home.
Pirates scored the goal in the 75th minute from Tshepang Moremi to hand the visitors a crucial advantage.
Pirates will now shift their focus to the second leg of the second preliminary round, set to take place at Orlando Stadium on Friday, 23 October.
The last time Pirates reached the CAF Champions League group stages was in the 2024/25 season, when they advanced to the semi-finals but lost to eventual winners Pyramids FC.
Meanwhile Kaizer Chiefs suffered a 1-0 defeat against Red Arrows in the first leg of the second preliminary CAF Confederation Cup at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium, Lusaka.
Elsewhere Milford FC extended their unbeaten run to four matches in the Betway Premiership, owing to a hard-fought 1-0 win over Golden Arrows at the Princess Magogo Stadium and Kruger United beat Chippa United 1-0 at Buffalo stadium on Saturday afternoon.