Black Leopards fans faced huge disappointment on Saturday, when they shared the spoils 1-1 with Highlandspark in their NFD match at the Thohoyandou Stadium.

Just like in their last three matches, Leopards were by far the better side when it came to ball possession. Realizing that the home side was unstoppable, the visitors from Thembisa took their time studying their opponents’ weak points. Although Highlandspark looked hypnotized for the better part of the first half, Lidoda Duvha failed to capitalize. All they did was to squander numerous obvious scoring chances and converted only one.

In the 24th minute, the home side broke the deadlock. Leonard Ntshangase, their scoring machine, found the net after a great pass by Jabulani Ndebele.

Sanele Mkhize, the Leopards’ centre forward, was booked for dangerous play in the 29th minute. He tackled Zakhele Dlamini from behind and the referee was lenient enough not to give him his marching orders. Samuel Tefu of Black Leopards made an unforgettable blunder in the 39th minute. He received a neat pass from Bongani Manana and shot straight to the keeper from close range.

Lidoda Duvha effected two changes to their starting line-up in the opening minutes of the last half. They replaced Samuel Tefu and Sanele Mkhize with Sizwe Sibiya and Abbas Amidu respectively.

The visitors found the equaliser through Lerato Masopa in the 67th minute. Highlandspark started to demonstrate their delaying tactics soon after their goal. Their keeper, Vusi Maseko, was warned for wasting time. Leopards were all over Highlandspark in the last 20 minutes of the game, but it was difficult for them to beat the keeper.