Orlando Pirates player ratings after Marumo Gallants loss: Jele disappoints, Shandu sparkles

Impressive on his return to action after recovering from a long-term injury.

Ofori came very close to saving Ndabayithethwa Ndlondlo's penalty in regulation time as his fingers touched the ball and he made several crucial saves during the 120 minutes including extra-time.

Also denied Miguel Timm during the penalty shootout.

Celebrated his recent Bafana Bafana call-up with a great performance.

Shandu went about his business as usual as he tormented left-back Lebohang Mabotja with explosive overlapping runs which saw him score Bucs' equalising goal and he was rarely tested defensively.

Targeted by Katlego Otladisa.

Mako never got the chance to push forward and make his usual accurate crosses into the opposition box as he was more concerned with stopping Otladisa, who gave the Pirates left-back a hard time.

Stood tall in the face of Gallants' onslaught.

Ndah displayed courage, and excellent reading of the game with the host wingers cutting inside to create problems for the Pirates centre backs, but the Nigerian star timed his tackles well and made vital interceptions.

Marked his return to the team with a poor display.

Jele was targeted by his former Pirates teammate Joseph Molangoane and he conceded a penalty after he had fouled the Gallants winger. Jele also gave away possession several times and he was nearly punished by Molangoane in extra-time.

Showed what Pirates were missing in midfield against Kaizer Chiefs last weekend.

Mosele was full of energy while operating as a box-to-box midfielder and his forward passes caused havoc for Gallants' defence, but the visitors were poor in the final third.

Gave an action-packed display in the middle of the park.

Monare made solid tackles in his role to shield the defence, while making a few forward runs which led to him forcing goalkeeper King Ndlovu into a fine save, but his impact fizzled in extra-time.

One of Bucs' brightest attacking sparks.

Hotto made a couple of runs into the Gallants box from the left and delivered some decent crosses, but his impact also fizzled in extra-time.

Largely an anonymous presence for most of the game.

Dlamini's notable contributions came from set-pieces as the Gallants defenders closed him down whenever he was in possession of the ball.

Wasteful on the night.

Lepasa was able to get himself in goalscoring positions, but he was let down by some poor finishing and he could have easily grabbed a first-half brace.

A listless performance from the 21-year-old marksman.

Peprah was largely on the periphery of the game before he was replaced by Tshegofatso Mabasa after the restart.

Injected more pace into the Pirates attack after coming on in the 60th minute and was unlucky not to score in extra-time as he hit the crossbar following a quick counter-attack.

Caused havoc for the hosts' defence and he managed to force Ndlovu into a good save with a well-taken shot.

Replaced Shandu in the 86th minute and he was able to contain Sibusiso Sibeko, who was looking to use his fresh legs and blistering speed to create problems for the Bucs defence.