Panorama seals much-needed victory over second-from-bottom Phala Stars
It was a vital victory in Panorama's fight to get out of the bottom three.
Panorama Football Club (the Undertakers) earned its sixth SAB League victory of the season and went three games unbeaten against Phala Stars on Monday, 22 April, to go six points ahead of Phala.
The Undertakers’ SAB League team, which takes part in the Blue Stream of the Johannesburg SAB League, has had a reasonable start to its SAB League career during its first stint in the fourth tier of South Africa’s soccer structure. With two games left in the season, Panorama has managed to go three games unbeaten, its longest unbeaten run of the season, showcasing how it has grown throughout the course of the season.
Panorama’s season got off to a torrid start, as The Undertakers lost seven of their first nine games, with their first win only coming in their 10th game, at home to Meadowlands FC, whom they defeated 4–3. The following week, Pano endured its worst loss of the season, a 9–0 drubbing at the hands of Kaizer Chiefs, a blue way to finish 2018.
The team returned to winning ways in January 2019 however, when it swept aside Navada Stars on 13 January, and Phala Stars the following week, with the game against Phala Stars on 19 January bringing about the first clean sheet of the campaign. The Undertakers have since won three more games, with victories coming against Myeni (24 February), Navada Stars (3 April), and most recently, Phala Stars (22 April).
The games against Navada and Phala brought about Pano’s second and third clean sheets of the season respectively, as Panorama now lies third from the bottom, ahead of Navada, who lie at the bottom without a single point this season, and Phala, who are six points behind the Undertakers. The 3–0 victory against Phala Stars on 22 April helped extend Pano’s unbeaten run to three games, following impressive draws with Kaizer Chiefs – a major turnaround after the reverse result – and second-placed Senaoane Gunners.
Panorama’s final two opponents, who are lying in wait, are Sabelo Super Stars and Setheo United, both of whom are fighting for a top six finish.
