The voting which started on 13 June 2005 will officially stop at midnight on Friday, ending six weeks of frantic voting by enthusiastic soccer supporters backing their teams to play in this year's biggest one-day soccer spectacular.

Defending Telkom Charity Cup champions Mamelodi Sundowns were still leading the race when the blackout on the results kicked-in on 19 July 2005.

Trailing the champions was Black Leopards, with Bloemfontein Celtic, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates occupying the number 3, 4 and five spots respectively.

Some soccer team representatives were invited to view the voting results platform at the Randburg Foneworx offices on Wednesday.

They witnessed the voting system at work, how the votes were streaming in and how they were transferred from the computer system onto the Telkom Charity Cup website now closed for public viewing as part of the blackout.

The blackout has seen vigorous voting for the top five teams since Tuesday, with the last four - excluding Mamelodi Sundowns - running a neck-and-neck race to play at the FNB Stadium on 30 July 2005.

The results will be unveiled during a public draw at Summer Place on Monday 25 July 2005.

Telkom's Advertising and Promotions Executive Zikie Molusi assured the public that the voting process was above board. Molusi said the voting system was ready to handle the increased number of calls expected in the dying moments of the voting.

The system has been upgraded to handle 48 000 voice calls and 180 000 SMS's an hour.

Molusi urged soccer supporters to buy tickets for the tournament early to avoid a last minute rush. Tickets are selling at Computicket for R35 for adults and R15 for minors.