Best PSL matches
We dig deep into the archives and compile a list of the most memorable PSL matches in the 25-year existence of KICK OFF Magazine.
With KICK OFF this month reaching a historic milestone of 25 years in existence, senior writer Lovemore Moyo has compiled a handful of games that rank as some of the best to have been played in South African top-flight football since the start of the modern day PSL in August 1996. These memorable matches produced plenty goals and will be hard to forget.
28/11/1997
SUPERSPORT UNITED 4 (Madigage 21 Salmon 42 Koumantarakis 47 Collett 56) MANNING RANGERS 4 (Chikoya 29 Ndimande 33, 65 Nduti 78) Eight goals and two red cards on a summer night in the capital city is as rare as snow in that part of the world. Four goals were scored within 19 minutes as the first half of the clash between SuperSport and Rangers finished 2-2, with the small crowd dancing with joy at the 45 minutes of entertainment they had just witnessed. Two minutes after the break, the towering George Koumantarakis stretched the host’s lead before Claude Collet added the fourth as the home team looked to have sealed victory before the hour mark. However, the visitors displayed resilience as Solo Ndimande reduced the deficit before Congolese defender Liswa Nduti equalised with 12 minutes remaining. Both teams had chances to win, but would eventually share the points, with SuperSport ending the match a coach and goalkeeper light as Shane MacGregor and gloveman Paul Evans were sent off. SuperSport finished five points above safety that season while Rangers ended fifth on the log.
28/03/1999
CAPE TOWN SPURS 4 (Modise 36 Booth 48 Sofiadellis 60 Meiring 61) KAIZER CHIEFS 5 (Nauseb 6 Matsau 30, 41 Mooki 78 Tovey 90) In the days when games produced goals like confetti at a wedding, this particular encounter had nine, a disallowed goal plus plenty missed chances at Green Point Stadium. The Eagles fell behind by two goals at the halfway stage of the first half, but were leading 4-3 just after the hour mark. They would however end up on the losing side as Thabo Mooki equalised before Neil Tovey scored the winner in injury time. The game was also significant in pitting junior internationals Daniel Matsau and Mathew Booth against each other, with both scoring for their respective teams.
20/10/1999
ORLANDO PIRATES 3 (Mkhize 62, 84 Lewis 78) SANTOS 3 (Okpara 10 og Raselemane 40 Ithier 79) Santos were leading 2-0 at half-time, and just after Pirates equalised, the Capetonians took the lead again courtesy of Jean Marc Ithier
with just 10 minutes left. Ted Dumitru then threw caution to the wind and had The Bucs playing with Denis Lota, Phumlani Mkhize, Andries Sebola and Sibusiso Zuma in attack in the chase for the equaliser, which came about with five minutes remaining. Fans hardly had a chance to sit down on that unforgettable day at Johannesburg Stadium.
28/11/1999
MANNING RANGERS 4 (Kungwane 43, 71 Ndimande 60, Muir 67) BLOEMFONTEIN CELTIC 4 (Kotoane 10, 18 Vries 29 Matsau 70) An action-packed eight-goal thriller left the spoils shared between Rangers and Celtic that day, with both finishing in the top half at the end of the campaign as Rangers ended fourth, and Celtic seventh.
18/12/1999
TEMBISA CLASSIC 5 (Tucker og 19 Mackett 39 Zwane 42 Matsibela 51 Mthunzi 66) HELLENIC 4 (Young 35, 76 Madiba 56 O’Gorman 74) Yizo Yizo had lost the reverse leg 6-0 in Cape Town and were out for revenge ahead of the clash in Makhulong, which turned into a thrill-a-minute tie which produced nine goals – four in the first half and five in the second. The game was settled just past the hour mark when Colin Mthunzi scored the fifth for the home team to make it 5-2, with the visitors then reducing that deficit by two goals. Khabo Zondo was the coach of a team that was the darling of the people of Tembisa. Opponents Hellenic were involved in many high-scoring games that season including the 6-0 win over Classic, 5-0 victories over both Bloemfontein Celtic and Santos, 4-1 wins over AmaZulu and Bush Bucks, a 4-3 win over Manning Rangers as well as a 2-4 and 3-4 defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns. Fans were almost always guaranteed an avalanche of goals in a match involving The Greek Gods that season, as they went on to finish in 8th position under the tutelage of a young Gavin Hunt.
12/3/2000
MAMELODI SUNDOWNS 3 (Mougou 20, 54 Mudau 22) ORLANDO PIRATES 3 (Mkhize 39 Ngake 45 Mngomeni 51) In the reverse fixture played on the last day of the season, with The Brazilians having already won the league, they triumphed
3-0, but in this entertaining clash in March, the two sides couldn’t be separated, with all six goals scored before the hour mark.
01/04/2000
AFRICAN WANDERERS 4 (Ilodigwe 35, 47 Mkhondwane 57 Lethebe 85) ORLANDO PIRATES 3 (Lota 25, 44 Mkhize 27) If you thought this was an April Fools’ Day joke, you are mistaken. Abaqulusi had a tendency of providing thrills at random, having never really settled in the PSL. As
usual they were struggling and playing for survival under Fred Njiyela when they came up against Pirates with six games left in the season. They had lost their two previous games, and when Bucs striker Denis Lota struck the opener with Phumlani Mkhize immediately adding the second, a massacre was anticipated. However, Wanderers fought back hard with Tony Ilodigwe reducing the deficit by half, but the visitors added a third just before the break as Lota was on target yet again, leaving the scoreboard reading 3-1 to Pirates at the break. Yet just 12 minutes into the second half it was 3-3 after goals by Ilodigwe and Ronald Mkhondwane, and with just five minutes remaining, Abram Lethebe won it for the hosts as they recorded a famous win. Wanderers would end the season in 16th, three points above relegation in the 18-team league, while Pirates finished as runners-up.
07/04/2000
AMAZULU 2 (Lungu 66, Sofiadelis 73 pen) SUPERSPORT UNITED 7 (Seopa 31 Araujo 39, Notoane 41, 49 Bang-Penda 75, 88 Greyling 90) Nine goals on a day when Gavin Lane was also dismissed defines this as a classic. Lane had stood in as a player-coach earlier on that season, filling in between Clive Barker’s departure and Eddie Lewis’ appointment. Usuthu would suffer relegation that season alongside Mother City.
1/4/2001
ORLANDO PIRATES 6 (Ndlanya 23, 71 Vilakazi 28 Ngake 67 Mkhize 78, 90) SUPERSPORT 2 (Notoane 46 Solomons 55) SuperSport had come into this game having put five goals past Arrows and four past Bush Bucks in their previous two encounters. Their impressive record didn’t scare Pirates though, who claimed a memorable win that played its part in The Bucs’ championship-winning campaign.
9/12/2001
BLACK LEOPARDS 5 (Mabosho 20 Mnguni 24, 72 Sibeko 52 Sikhwivhilu 67) RIA STARS 4 (Mnguni 20og Wilson 49 Machaka 69 Moloi 90) This will remain the best Limpopo derby ever as it produced nine goals as well as a dismissal, with Stars keeper Aime Kitenge sent off with 20 minutes remaining. It was also Sheppard Murape’s last game in charge of Manyora.
24/04/2002
BUSH BUCKS 4 (Mazibuko 3, 46 Zibi 48 Siphika 52) SANTOS 3 (Mannetti 60, 88 Notoane 86) These were the three points that made sure Bush Bucks were safe from the drop that season. Nigel Dixon was in charge at the time in a campaign that had started with Konti Kubheka in charge before Kenny Ndlazi took over, only to then leave the duties to Dixon before Christmas. Bush Bucks had lost all of their last six games heading into this encounter, conceding 23 goals in the process – including seven against Leopards two weeks earlier – meaning any thought of victory against the imminent champions would be absurd. Bucks led 4-0 by the 52nd minute before conceding three on a day when their opponents were handed the league title after challengers Jomo Cosmos drew to surrender in the title race.
27/02/2002
BUSH BUCKS 4 (Wilfred Mugeyi 52 Haschick 62 Maduka 73, 82) HELLENIC 3 (Kometsi 5 Budde 30 Smith 40) This will go down as one of the greatest comebacks in domestic football. Hellenic were leading 3-0 after 40 minutes and looking a sure bet to take home all three points, however Bucks came back revived in the second half as they snatched all three points with eight minutes to go. Bruce Grobelaar – the man in charge of Hellenic at the time – was left scratching his bald head at full-time, wondering what had gone wrong, as his side narrowly escaped the drop by four points that season, with Bucks finishing one point better in 15th place.
29/01/2005
SUPERSPORT UNITED 4 (Mahlangu 14 Studzinski 59 Tico-Tico 79 Mnguni 88) ORLANDO PIRATES 3 (Lekgwathi 24 Leremi 26 Katza 52og) To think that Pirates led 3-1 at one stage in this game and yet surrendered all three points sounds rather surreal. With this defeat at Loftus, The Bucs’ 17-match unbeaten start to the season also went up in smoke.
19/02/2005
MAMELODI SUNDOWNS 3 (Masehe 8 Sapula 58 Mthombeni 84) KAIZER CHIEFS 4 (Radebe 42 Mbesuma 44, 59, 62) On their way to defending their league title, Chiefs faced a familiar foe in Sundowns who they were desperate to overcome. The red-hot Collins Mbesuma took the responsibility on his shoulders, netting a superb hat-trick in a game that saw red cards issued to Siaka Tiene and Scara Ngobese. Chiefs went on to win the title on the last day of the season after Pirates fumbled by failing to beat Bush Bucks at home.
6/5/2006
BLACK LEOPARDS 3 (Masango 13 Sikhwivhilu 16, 51) AJAX CAPE TOWN 3 (Paulse 18 Mubiala 57 Mofokeng 70) Despite being a season-ending dead rubber tie, the fixture still produced six goals, with visiting Ajax coming back from behind to force an entertaining draw.
22/11/2008
ORLANDO PIRATES 4 (Mushangazhike 12 Modise 56, 88 Mhlongo 74) THANDA ROYAL ZULU 2 (Mohammed 19 Makita 49og) This was the game that marked the reopening of the revamped Mecca of South Africa football, Orlando Stadium. The match was played at a frenetic pace in front of a capacity crowd, with Teko Modise at his brilliant best as he ran rings around the Thanda players in a thrilling tie in which the now Cape Town City playmaker scored a brace. Pirates eventually lost the league on goal difference to SuperSport United that year.
17/02/2011
MAMELODI SUNDOWNS 6 (Zwane 20 Tau 43, 81 Nascimento 62pen Morena 69, 75) ORLANDO PIRATES 0 It is yet another embarrassing loss for Pirates, with the less said about the fan violence that accompanied this game the better. The Bucs would eventually be punished over a year later as they were forced to play two home matches in a closed stadium, with the implementation of one of those matches suspended for 24 months.
21/5/2011
ORLANDO PIRATES 2 (Ndulula 38 Chansa 84) GOLDEN ARROWS 1 (Mbesuma 41) To win the league, Pirates had to ensure victory over Arrows in the last game of the season and hope rivals Ajax Cape Town did not take all three points off Maritzburg United. And that is exactly what happened, though it was a nervy end as the two sides sat at one goal apiece with a mere six minutes left on the clock. With news then filtering in that the Urban Warriors were trailing, Pirates knew that all they needed was a goal, which came courtesy of a stinging drive by Isaac Chansa that lifted the roof at Orlando Stadium. Ajax eventually squeezed out a point, but it mattered not as Pirates won the title on goal difference.
15/4/2015
MAMELODI SUNDOWNS 0 BLOEMFONTEIN CELTIC 5 (Lamola 1 Mhango 9, 56 Morena 48 Nyatama 54) A bet on Celtic winning against
Sundowns at Lucas Moripe Stadium would be considered foolish as much as it would be laughable. However, not only did Siwelele win, but in fine fashion, scoring five with no reply against a team that were defending champions at the time.
21/5/2016
JOMO COSMOS 1 (Mntambo 27) MARITZBURG UNITED 3 (Mokate 81 Rusike 86, 90) Evidently written off as they lay on their deathbed with just two games remaining, Maritzburg somehow managed to stage a great escape as they won both encounters, the last being a winner-takesall clash against Cosmos in Potchefstroom. It seemed almost impossible, with that survival mission looking dead and buried on the last day, only to be resuscitated in the closing stages of the game as the visitors scored three goals in the last 10 minutes. The post-match celebrations clearly depicted the magnitude of the victory as the Team of Choice preserved their top-flight status.
1/11/2016
SUPERSPORT UNITED 6 (Letsholonyane 52 Boxall 54, 56 Phala 63 Grobler 74 Brockie 88pen) ORLANDO PIRATES 1 (Ndoro 43) Pirates were humiliated in the rain at Mbombela Stadium, immediately forcing their head coach Muhsin Ertugral to resign. The result equaled their worst defeat in history at the time after having lost to Mamelodi Sundowns by the same scoreline in 1990.