Mailula proves his class again

Bafana Bafana striker Cassis Mailula proved his class again, contributing an assist on his return to the first team as Toronto hammered Saint Laurent in the first leg of the Canadian Championship quarter-finals.

The 22-year-old laid a delightful assist to teammate Matty Longstaff to break the deadlock and opened the scoring for Toronto in the 50th minute. Deandre kerr and Federico Bernaschi added one each to make it 3-0 for the visiting side.

READ | Celebrations erupt in Canada as Mailula shines

Mailula played 65 minutes in the encounter but would still be pleased with his effort and another chance to stake a spot in the first team.

In a statement issued by the club, Mailula was reported to have been ‘loaned out’ to the side’s reserves team, prompting many to raise concerns about the player's place in the team.

However, the player’s representative, Karabo Tshabuse explained to KickOff that Mailula that the move is mostly likely aimed at giving him more playing time.

"It's a similar concept, in what I understand, with the DDC, so it's just for him to get minutes and game-time," Tshabuse explained. 

"But he would still play for the first team and also train with the second team and get game-time, where it doesn't conflict with the reserve team schedule.

"It's just that he has two playing cards basically, so he could feature in two streams," she added.

ALSO READ | Mailula's agent: What Toronto loan decision means

The match against Saint Lauren was only a second start for Mailula, who marked his first start with a goal in a 5-0 thrashing of Simcoe County Rovers.

Next up for Toronto is an MLS clash against New York City to be played on Sunday.

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