Larsen impressed with his charges

The Buccaneers were awarded a spot-kick in the 82nd minute when a Celtic defender was adjudged to have handled the ball in the box, with Andile Jali netting the winning goal.

“I am proud of my troops; they held their own against Orlando Pirates and created enough chances but did not take them, “ Larsen says. “We did well until Pirates were awarded that dubious penalty. The player was falling and did not put out his hand.

“But there were a lot of positives to take out of the match; we will be very competitive this season.”

Pirates coach Augusto Palacios was happy with the result and is now eyeing some more silverware for his club.

“Cup games are always very difficult and Celtic are not an easy side to play against,” he says. “I knew they would play counter-attack and try and catch us on the break. However, we played well as a team and had a good mixture of youth and experience.

“We are ready for any team that we will meet in the semifinal. The only worry I have is the injuries we have to key players. Thabo Matlaba was out with an injury, and Rooi [Mahamutsa] and Oupa [Manyisa] were replaced due to knocks. Daine Klate also has a knock, but we will know more by Sunday.