The new Betway Premiership season gets underway on Saturday and we pick out a few bets from the weekend coupon
Chippa United 10/1 Draw 4/1 Sundowns 0.28/1
Mamelodi Sundowns are the first of the big guns in action on Saturday when they travel to take on Chippa United in a 3pm kick off.
Chippa finished 11th last season with a record of 8 wins, 7 draws and 13 defeats. They scored 22 goals and conceded 28 overall and 6 of their wins came in home games.
Downs finished 12 points clear of Pirates at the top of the log last season and had the title wrapped up long before the end of the campaign. They performed with great credit in the Club World Cup in the USA last month and last weekend they demolished Richards Bay 4-0 in the MTN8.
The recent head to head record makes grim reading for Chippa. Last season Downs won both league meetings 3-0 and in 2023/24 Downs won both games by a 2-0 scoreline. Going further back Downs have won 11 league head to heads in a row and Chippa have found the net just twice in that sequence.
Verdict
This is quite a task for Chippa's new coach and it's hard to make a case for anything other than an away win. Finding at bet at “odds against” took a while and I'll take my chances with Downs to win a game of 3 goals or more in total.
Bet: Sundowns to win and over 2.5 goals at 21/20 with Betway
Orlando Pirates 5/10 Draw 2.95/1 Sekhukhune 58/10
Pirates were distant runners up to Sundowns last season but they were 13 points clear of third placed Stellenbosch and enjoyed success in domestic cup competitions. The Bucs won 10 of 14 league games last season, drawing 2 and losing 2. Last weekend Pirates were 2-0 winners at home to Polokwane in the MTN8.
Sekhukhune finished in a very creditable fourth position last season, winning 13 of 28 league games. Away from home they won 6, drew 4 and lost 4 and like Pirates they also made progress in the MTN8 last weekend with a 3-2 home win over TS Galaxy.
Home advantage counted for nothing last season with Pirates winning 2-1 on the road and Sekhukhune were 1-0 winners in Orlando.
Verdict
Pirates have finished as runners up to Sundowns in each of the last 3 seasons, they have a new coach this time around and a solid start is essential. Sekhukhune proved they were no mugs last season and although I am stopping well short of calling a surprise I can see the visitors contributing to the scoring.
Bet: Both teams to score? (yes) 27/20 at Betway
Stellenbosch 21/20 FC Draw 21/10 Kaizer Chiefs 2.85/1
This is the pick of the two matches taking place on Sunday. Stellies finished third last season with a tally of 48 log points from 28 matches. They were runners up to Pirates in the MTN8 final last season and they tuned up fopr the current Betway Premiership campaign with a 3-2 win over TS Galaxy in that competition last week.
A ninth placed finish for Chiefs in the league last season saw them miss out on the MTN8. They did break their trophy drought by landing the Nedbank Cup but a league record of 8 wins, 8 draws and 12 defeats fell way below expectations and they only won 3 of 14 away from home.
Despite such a poor campaign in 2024/25 Chiefs did enjoy playing Stellenbosch. They won both league meetings, 2-1 at home and 1-0 away in addition to a 3-1 win away from home in the Nedbank Cup.
Verdict
Stellies have the advanatge of having a competitive domestic match under their belts (in the MTN8) but given Chiefs had the wood over them last season the home side look plenty short enough in the betting. I'm expecting an eventful enough match and will again side with both teams to score.
Bet: Both teams to score? (yes) 21/20 at Betway
