One red card, 12 yellows, 46 fouls in fiery derby

One player was sent off, 12 cautioned and 46 fouls committed during a fiery South African Premiership derby won 2-0 by Maritzburg United against AmaZulu Friday.

There could have been more red cards as Togo centre-back Sadat Ouro-Akoriko of AmaZulu escaped with a yellow after pushing his hand into the face of an opponent.

The red card that was shown went to another AmaZulu player, Butholezwe Ncube, midway through the second half after a second booking.

Both United goals came from close range off low crosses with Bandile Shandu breaking the deadlock on 40 minutes and Siphesihle Ndlovu sealing a home win one minute into stoppage time.

Before the kick-off at Harry Gwala Stadium, 80 kilometres and two places in the top half of the standings separated the clubs from kwaZulu-Natal cities Pietermaritzburg and Durban.

By full-time, Maritzburg rose two places to fourth, seven points behind Mamelodi Sundowns having played one game more.

AmaZulu, who gained promotion to the top flight this season by buying the second division champions, slipped one spot to ninth in the 16-club Premiership.

Each club has nine matches to play and United are set to achieve their target of a top eight finish, which secures qualification for a lucrative knockout competition early next season.

Although AmaZulu lie in mid-table, their survival is far from certain as they are only five points above the relegation zone.