By Nhlakanipho Mnqayi
Durban City marked their historic debut in the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Confederation Cup with a 1-0 victory over Burundi’s Rukinzo FC in the first leg of the preliminary round at Moses Mabhida Stadium on Sunday.
An own goal from Rukinzo in the 70th minute sealed a landmark victory for the Citizens, giving the South African side a slender advantage heading into the return leg in Burundi next Sunday.
Playing in front of their home supporters, City started on the front foot and created several opportunities but lacked composure in the final third.
Their best chance of the first half came in the 36th minute when Tashreeq Morris rose to meet a cross, but his header was comfortably saved by the Rukinzo goalkeeper. The sides went into the break level at 0-0.
City emerged from the interval with greater composure and continued to apply pressure on the visitors. Their persistence eventually paid off in the 70th minute when Rukinzo conceded an own goal to give City the lead.
The goal was enough to secure Durban City’s first-ever victory in a CAF competition and put them in a favourable position ahead of the second leg.
Speaking after the match, Durban City head coach Khalil Ben Youssef admitted that his side could have been more clinical but praised the players for responding after a difficult first half.
“The first half wasn’t good. We were rushing a lot and we made a lot of mistakes. In the second half, we rectified that and we told them to be calm and play their game, they don’t have to rush. The most important thing is that we scored the goal and we kept the clean sheet,” Ben Youssef said.
City will now have a full week to prepare for the second leg in Burundi, where they will look to protect their 1-0 advantage and progress to the next stage of the CAF Confederation Cup qualifiers.
