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Orlando Pirates and Richards Bay will attempt to stay in touch with
DStv Premiership leaders Mamelodi Sundowns in matchday 9's midweek fixtures.
The Buccaneers trail the Brazilians by five points in second place ahead of their trip to Sekhukhune United on Tuesday.
Pirates are seeking back-to-back league wins for the first time this season after beating TS Galaxy 2-0 prior to the international break, while Babina Noko drew 1-1 with Stellenbosch to leave them winless after eight matches and second from bottom in the standings.
Bucs head coach Jose Riveiro welcomed the recent break after a gruelling opening two months as it allowed him more time on the training pitch to analyse his squad.
"We had a short and well-deserved rest for the boys. We used the time properly," Riveiro said. "[The break] it's not bad and it's not good. It is what it is, we had to adapt ourselves to the schedules. Ours was terrible in terms of games and trips. September was a bit normal and we had this break until the end of the month.
"There were a lot of things to analyse and try to implement for these weeks. For me as a coach, I'm glad we have time to train, for a team like us that trusts in the training process."
Royal AM will be targeting a return to winning ways when they take on a resurgent SuperSport United at the Lucas Masterpieces Moripe Stadium.
Thwihli Thwahla saw a three-match unbeaten run come to an end with a 1-0 defeat to newly-promoted Richards Bay, which left them six points adrift of Sundowns in fourth spot. Matsatsantsa are two points behind them in seventh position after a 2-1 loss to Kaizer Chiefs halted a three-game winning streak.
Elsewhere, fifth-placed Golden Arrows will be looking to continue their impressive run when Cape Town City visit the Princess Magogo Stadium.
Abafana Bes'thende thrashed Swallows 4-0 most recently to register their third win in four outings, having recovered from a slow start to the campaign. The Citizens are down in 12th spot after picking up just two victories from their opening eight encounters, but a 0-0 draw with Sekhukhune last time out made it six games without defeat.
Stellenbosch will be eyeing just their third win of the season when they welcome Maritzburg United to the Danie Craven Stadium.
The 11th-placed Maroons went unbeaten in their first four matches before back-to-back defeats against Sundowns and Richards Bay curtailed that momentum, although they bounced back with a 2-1 win at Swallows and a draw with Sekhukhune. The Team of Choice have struggled for consistency and find themselves at the wrong end of the table in 13th position after losing 2-1 to SuperSport most recently.
Meanwhile, rock-bottom Marumo Gallants will be hoping the return of Dan Malesela can lead them to victory against TS Galaxy at the Mbombela Stadium.
Bahlabane Ba Ntwa are winless after eight games and suffered their fifth defeat of the campaign at the hands of Chippa United (1-0) prior to the international break. The Rockets' form has dipped following their fine start of proceedings, with a goalless draw against the Natal Rich Boyz extending their winless run to five matches.
In Wednesday's action, Richards Bay lock horns with AmaZulu in a KZN derby at the Moses Mabhida Stadium, while struggling Swallows do battle with Kaizer Chiefs for the bragging rights in Soweto.
The National First Division champions are enjoying an impressive debut in the top flight, losing just two of their opening eight matches to be one of the early challengers to Masandawana in third place. Usuthu have dropped off the pace and occupy sixth spot after a 1-0 reverse to Downs made it three defeats in their last four outings.
The Dube Birds parted ways with head coach Dylan Kerr in the wake of the heavy 4-0 loss to Arrows, which left them third from bottom on just eight points. The Glamour Boys arrested a three-game winless run when they beat SuperSport 2-1 last time out to climb up to ninth in the standings.
Chiefs head coach Arthur Zwane revealed that they used the international break to iron out their defensive woes, having shipped nine goals in their eight league encounters.
"Looking at how we've been conceding goals, it was on top of our list to make sure that we fix that. Eighty per cent of the goals we've conceded, we gave the opponents the leverage to punish us... it's been elementary mistakes and if we can minimise those mistakes we'll get better," Zwane said.
Tuesday's fixtures:
17h00: Sekhukhune United v Orlando Pirates
19h30: Golden Arrows v Cape Town City
19h30: Stellenbosch v Maritzburg United
19h30: SuperSport United v Royal AM
19h30: TS Galaxy v Marumo Gallants
Wednesday's fixtures:
17h00: AmaZulu v Richards Bay
19h30: Swallows v Kaizer Chiefs
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