Orlando Pirates were held to a 2-2 stalemate by English outfit Plymouth Argyle in their pre-season friendly held at Banús Football Centre in Marbella on Friday night.

It was a historic occasion on Spain’s south coast where the two sides faced off for the first time ever in the all-too-crucial practice match. The Soweto Giants initially battled to find some rhythm early on, with Plymouth looking the more fluid of the two sides on attack.

The early chances however went the way of the Buccaneers, who could have taken the lead in the 12th minute when Makhehleni Makhaula found himself one-on-one with goalkeeper Michael Cooper, only to hook his shot well over the bar.

Monnapule Saleng followed it up with his own spurned opportunity as he pulled his effort wide after getting on the end of quick transition ball from deep.

Nearly half an hour of play elapsed before The Pilgrims got their first sniff at the Bucs goal, but that chance also went abegging as they only mustered up a miscued shot from close range.

Bucs keeper Sipho Chaine was eventually called into action in the 37th minute when he pulled off an excellent stop to keep out a powerful shot struck from close range by Muhamed Tijani.

The opener came at the other end as Plymouth failed to make a clearance deep inside their territory, allowing Evidence Makgopa the chance to guide the ball over the line following a desperate scramble deep inside the penalty area.

The English side however hit back almost immediately, with teenage striker Freddie Issaka drawing them level in the 40th minute. It only took the Buccaneers three minutes to restore their lead, with their second goal coming through Olisa Ndah, who was on hand to capitalise on another defensive mix-up from the English side.

Wholesale changes were made at the break by both camps, and it was the men in green, who were quickest off the blocks following the restart. They were afforded the chance to draw level from the spot seconds into the second half after Thabiso Monyane was adjudged to have brought down Issaka inside the box.

Striker Ryan Hardie was entrusted with spot-kick duties, but replacement keeper Melusi Buthelezi was equal to the task as he went low to his right to deny the former Scotland youth international.