Stellenbosch FC’s DDC champions beat Crystal Palace on Saturday to book their spot in the third successive Premier League Next Generation Tournament final.
In fact, after winning successive matches against Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa, Stellies came to the game knowing that they were already in final for the third successive time.
Palace started the game wanting to put the DDC champions under pressure, as they needed a win themselves to advance to the final.
The game was played more in the middle park with both teams canceling each other out. After nine minutes of football, Roy-Keane Aventur had an opportunity to put Stellies ahead but his shot went wide.
The game got more physical before half-time but the game went tied into the break.
The second half was underway with Palace looking for that opener and Stellies trying to defend with everything they had.
Stellenbosch defender Rijul Pillay fouled a Palace striker inside the box and the referee pointed to the spot in the 30th minute but Stellies goalkeeper David Passman produced a top save to keep the score 0-0.
With few minutes left on the clock, Liam Slade produced a good quality cross to find Shaakir Ahmed on the far post, and he made it 1-0 with a flying header.
The result saw Evangelos Vellios’ side finish top of their group and they will now likely face Everton in Sunday’s final.
