‘Leopards on the prowl for honours’
"The good days are here and the bad days are gone," said chairman David Thidiela while declaring Black Leopards were on the prowl for honours this season following their 3-2 win against Bloemfontein Celtic in the Premier League opener at Peter Mokaba Stadium over the week-end.
After a dismal five-year period in which they were relegated once and were invariably relegation candidates in the other seasons, Leopards finally broke the hoodoo not starting a season with a victory by beating Bloemfontein Celtic 3-2.
"The nightmares and heartaches are things of the past," said the Leopards chairman, "and we are ready to challenge the PSL's top teams for honours."
The remarkable change in fortunes took shape towards the end of the 2011/12 season when the Limpopo Province club were deep in the mire in the familiar position of facing the big drop to the PSL's First Division Not only did Leopards claw their way out of the relegation zone, but they surprised all and sundry with an exhilarating run in Caf's Confederation Cup and came within a whisker of reaching the eight-team round robin stage of Africa's second top club event - something that has eluded the top PSL teams in recent years.
Thidiela said Leopards continued their momentum against Celtic and would have won a great deal more comfortably had they not been reduced to 10 men through the red-carding of Jean Munganga while leading 2-0 midway through the second half.
