Arrows lose ground in Premiership title race with home draw against Celtic

A 10-man Lamontville Golden Arrows lost ground in the Premiership title chase after they were held to a 1-1 draw at home against mid-table Bloemfontein Celtic in Clermont on Sunday.

Defender Mzwanele Mahashe headed the visitors into the lead after 34 minutes for his second goal of the season but Arrows responded in the second half when Zimbabwean Knox Mutizwa equalised in the 72nd minute for his fifth league strike of the campaign.

With their KwaZulu-Natal rivals AmaZulu claiming second spot after a hard fought 1-0 win over Stellenbosch FC on Friday‚ the draw at the Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium left Arrows stuck in third place on the DStv Premiership standings

Their share of the spoils may have earned them 38 points from 22 matches‚ but Arrows remain stuck in third place after the result and they trail second-placed AmaZulu by two points‚ and leaders Mamelodi Sundowns by five.

Sundowns will be looking to extend their lead over AmaZulu to six points when they confront struggling Chippa United in Mdantsane on Monday at 3pm.

Arrows have been the surprise package of the season and having finished in the bottom half last season‚ they have punched above their weight so far this season and can dream of a maiden Premiership title with eight matches remaining.

Coach Mandla Ncikazi’s Arrows will hope to bounce back to winning ways on April 21 when they travel to Atteridgeville to face SuperSport United‚ while Celtic will be back in action against Swallows FC a day earlier on April 20.