Oswin Appollis Makes Honest Admission Over Man of the Match Award in Carling Knockout Final
- Oswin Appollis has shared his thoughts after being crowned the best player in the Carling Knockout Cup final against Marumo Gallants
- The South African international made an honest comment about winning the Man of the Match award in the final
- The reaction from the Bafana Bafana forward towards winning the MOTM award sparked different thoughts from fans on social media
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Orlando Pirates star Oswin Appollis has commented after being named the Man of the Match during the Buccaneers' 1–0 win over Marumo Gallants in the Carling Knockout Cup final on Saturday, 6 December 2025.
Source: Getty Images
A 105th-minute goal from Relebohile Mofokeng handed Orlando Pirates a 1–0 extra-time win over Marumo Gallants, securing the Carling Knockout Cup crown at the New Peter Mokaba Stadium.
It is the second trophy Appollis has won since joining Orlando Pirates in the summer from Polokwane City, as he was also part of the team that clinched the MTN8 title at the beginning of the season.
Appollis reacts to CKO final MOTM award
Appollis acknowledged that other players were more deserving of the Man of the Match award, despite taking home the R100 000 prize. He had already been replaced by Cemran Dansin when Orlando Pirates scored, yet 8,876 fans still chose him as the Man of the Match, with the winger admitting he hadn’t truly earned the honour.
Appollis expressed his gratitude after the game on SuperSport TV, saying they had to thank the man above for the win. He said he was happy for the team and proud of the fight they showed, and he thanked the fans for voting for him, though he felt other players deserved the recognition more because it wasn’t his best game.
The South African international added that the team had put in the work to reach the final, and that the boys had fought hard in this match as well as in previous games. He concluded by reiterating that he didn’t think he deserved the award, but he was grateful to the fans.
Source: Twitter
Here is what fans are saying about Appollis’ honest admission after being named the Player of the Match in the final against Marumo Gallants.
Nsindiso Gigaba wrote:
"I'm a Pirates die-hard supporter, but Otladisa was supposed to be a man of the match (my suggestion)."
Vusumzi Zaba Ngcoza said:
"It was his time to get the accolades; otherwise, during the semi-finals, I thought he did well, but TLB took it. Today is he's 👌"
Nkanyiso Mantengu implied:
"Man of the match in Carling depends on the number of fans that teams enjoy!"
Met-T shared:
"He was not happy with his performance at all. You can see that he doesn't even believe he was supposed to get this award."
Mthombeni wa Tshungu commented:
"We decided to give him today coz the TLB is already well fed off in the bank, that's how we roll at the buccaneers ☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️."
Khayelihle Takatshana reacted:
"He is telling the truth, but we are giving him the Man of the match because last time we gave Mbokazi his man of the match to pay his Debt, now we are returning his man of the match. Mbokazi didn't acquire that man of the match last time because he played well."
Oom: 🥸Tom added:
"He must accept that Pirates fans have no football knowledge, take the money and move on with his life. Even if he was sitting on the bench and came on in the 90th minute, they were still gonna vote for him."
Pirates sign new player from PSL rivals
Briefly News also reported that Orlando Pirates have signed a new player ahead of the January transfer window from their PSL rivals.
The Soweto-based club have reportedly been chasing the player since the summer, before reaching an agreement with his club this December.
Source: Briefly News
