Orlando Pirates are champions, Orbit College relegated on Betway Premiership final day

[p]It is a third trophy of the season for the side in what has been a campaign that will live long in the memory.[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/orlando-pirates/p4SF9EMI/"]Pirates[/a] are champions![/b][/p][p]The Buccaneers ended a 14-year wait to win their 10th league title as they halted [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/mamelodi-sundowns/lxZ6Bzh6/"]Mamelodi Sundowns[/a]’ run of eight successive championships. They become the first team other than The Brazilians to lift the trophy since Bidvest Wits in 2017.[/p][p]You would have to say they deserve it. As Sundowns stuttered to too many draws this campaign (eight), Pirates were able to take advantage of those slip-ups.[/p][p]They finished on 69 points, one ahead of Sundowns, but also recorded the most wins (21), scored the most goals (58) and conceded the fewest (12).[/p][p]After a run of three successive second-placed finishes in the league, where they never really got close to Sundowns, this is a remarkable campaign for the Soweto side and their coach, [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ouaddou-abdeslam/zVIMcak1/"]Abdeslam Ouaddou[/a].[/p][p]It is easy to forget they also won the MTN8 and the Carling Knockout, completing a treble for the first time since 2012.[/p][p]That season was the second in the ‘double-treble’ campaigns in which they won six trophies in two years. Thoughts will already be shifting to next season to see if they can do it again.[/p][image alt="Final Betway Premiership standings" id="5a6cc65c-f644-48a8-b6c1-780876b8656a" credit-line="Flashscore" guid="f6bac360-689a-47f5-b756-88782d95ebfb" original-width="1200" original-height="1200" /][p][b]Orbit their own worst enemies[/b][/p][p]Pirates finally took the lead deep into added time at the end of the first half. A corner was swung in and, as Orbit goalkeeper [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/nkomo-sabelo/6DaOumal/"]Sabelo Nkomo[/a] looked to punch the ball away under pressure from [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/mbatha-thalente/zuITHrv3/"]Thalente Mbatha[/a], he succeeded only in directing it into his own net from the edge of the six-yard box.[/p][p]It was 2-0 four minutes into the second half and, once again, it was an own goal, this time from a former Pirates player.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ndumiso-n/WtlvygnU/"]Ndumiso Ngiba[/a] tried to clear the ball away from onrushing Buccaneers forward [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/mbuthuma-yanela/Yau3xnYk/"]Yanela Mbuthuma[/a], but only succeeded in toe-poking it over his own goalkeeper and into the corner of the net.[/p][embed guid="5dea613e-c5fa-44b2-937d-0727d1cdbfc9" url="https://x.com/SABC_Sport/status/2058184384050586053?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]MTN8 line-up complete[/b][/p][p]The line-up for the 2026 MTN8 quarter-finals is complete, with Pirates set to start the defence of that title at home to [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/durban-city/jVI6SFig/"]Durban City[/a], who ended eighth in the league.[/p][p]Sundowns will host [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/polokwane-city/ADz8rR88/"]Polokwane City[/a], with those two having had some tight battles over the years, while [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/kaizer-chiefs/fFZ2CGx0/"]Kaizer Chiefs[/a] will welcome [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/golden-arrows/C6CjDdNg/"]Lamontville Golden Arrows[/a].[/p][p]The other quarter-final sees [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/amazulu/4jYGJsW7/"]AmaZulu[/a] face [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/sekhukhune/UySmgAPp/"]Sekhukhune United[/a], the teams that finished fourth and fifth in the league respectively.[/p][embed guid="560fa191-fa00-4349-8d31-4e19b079b02b" url="https://x.com/SABC_Sport/status/2058189873417187795?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/orbit-college/xUvPtdff/"]Orbit College[/a] are relegated[/b][/p][p]Orbit College’s stay in the South African top flight is over after one season following the defeat.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/magesi/SxnFHwfJ/"]Magesi FC[/a]’s 1-0 win over a [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/richards-bay/noDZhkBM/"]Richards Bay[/a] side with nothing to play for on the final day was enough to lift them off the bottom, though they will compete in the Promotion/Relegation Play-Offs against second-tier [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/cape-town-city/l8K0DYSm/"]Cape Town City[/a] and [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/milford/vVj5ECUK/"]Milford FC[/a].[/p][p]Orbit College finished on 24 points, the same number as Magesi, but the latter had a goal difference of -19 compared to -26 for Orbit.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/marumo-gallants/Gnghzo3C/"]Marumo Gallants[/a] completed a seventh draw in a row against [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/stellenbosch-fc/fJsWcA5b/"]Stellenbosch FC[/a] to finish on 25 points, essentially drawing their way to safety this season.[/p][p]Gallants stay up despite winning only two of their last 28 league games (D13 L13). Had they not started the season with back-to-back wins against Richards Bay and, ironically, Pirates, they would have been in real trouble.[/p][p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/chippa-utd/AiZa0UPS/"]Chippa United[/a] were the other side in trouble going into the final day, but they beat Kaizer Chiefs 1-0 away and are safe for another season.[/p]