Nedbank Cup quarter-final draw produces KZN derby

The Nedbank Cup quarterfinal draw has thrown up some intriguing ties, including a KwaZulu-Natal derby between Golden Arrows and Durban City.

The draw was conducted at the SuperSport studios in Randburg, Johannesburg, on Monday evening.

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The quarterfinal matches are scheduled to take place over the weekend of 7 and 8 March 2026, with the Premier Soccer League (PSL) to confirm the exact dates, venues and kick-off times in due course.

Here is a quick guide to the Last 8 clashes:

AmaZulu FC vs Casric Stars
AmaZulu will be favourites to progress against second-tier Casric Stars, but the visitors will be no pushovers on the back of ousting Orlando Pirates in the last round, and the fact they have yet to concede a goal in this year’s competition.

For Stars, it is yet another away day in the Nedbank Cup. This will be their fifth tie in the competition and everyone has been on the road.

AmaZulu have famously appeared in six finals of the Nedbank Cup down the years, the last in 2010, and have lost all of them. They may well feel this is their year though, with Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns already out.

But they will have to be wary of a Stars side with ambitions to match the feat of TS Galaxy and lift the trophy as a second-tier team. 

Sekhukhune United vs Milford FC

Sekhukhune United have a rare home game in the Nedbank Cup, with only four of their last 14 played in front of their own fans, and none of their last four.

They face second-tier leaders Milford FC for the second year in a row, having won 2-1 away in the Last 16 in 2025. Linda Mntambo scored both goals that day.

Milford will fancy an upset against Eric Tinkler’s side, and Sekhukhune have lost to lower-league opposition in the past. They were ousted on penalties by Platinum City Rovers in the Last 32 in 2022, but a year later were in the final, where they lost to Pirates.

It is the third time in four years Sekhukhune have reached the quarter-finals, and the third time in a row this season they face second-tier opponents, having already knocked out Highbury FC and the University of Pretoria. 

TS Galaxy vs Jacksa Spears

TS Galaxy are the only former champions remaining in the competition this year after their 2019 success, when they were still a second-tier outfit and defeated Kaizer Chiefs in the decider in Durban.

They ousted Sundowns in the last round with a 2-0 home win, and now face a team at the opposite end of the South African football spectrum in third-tier Jacksa Spears.

Spears have beaten fellow amateur teams in the first two rounds, and this will be a huge step up in opposition for them.

This will be the fifth time Galaxy have played amateur opposition and they have always won comfortably, including a 7-0 victory over CR Vasco da Gama last season, the same side that Spears beat in the previous round this year.

Galaxy have not progressed past the quarter-finals since they lifted the trophy seven years ago and will see this as a huge chance. 

Golden Arrows vs Durban City

Another local derby in this year’s competition as both Golden Arrows and Durban City chase a first-ever Nedbank Cup title.

The teams have met once before, in the league this season, and it ended in a 1-1 draw at City. That was back in August and much has changed for both sides since then.

Golden Arrows had exited in the first round of the Nedbank Cup in five of the last six seasons, so they are in rare territory after already seeing off two top-flight teams in this campaign, Orbit College and Stellenbosch FC.

They have twice reached the semi-finals but gone no further, in 2017 and 2019. Can they make a first final?

City have needed penalties in both their matches so far in 2026, having played to a pair of 0-0 draws.

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