Orlando Pirates’five best Soweto Derby wins

24 January, 1970 Kaizer Chiefs 4 Orlando Pirates 6 Rogue Beer Cup third place play-off

The first ever meeting between Chiefs and Pirates took place in a year in which there was no structured league but rather several smaller one-off competitions.

The two sides met at the Orlando Stadium in the third place play-off of an eight-team tournament sponsored by South African Breweries with total prize money of R1,000.

How ironic that the Chiefs-Pirates encounter was actually a curtain raiser to the final later in the day which saw Moroka Swallows beat Pimville United Brothers 4-3. Chiefs had lost to PUBS in the semifinals and Pirates to Swallows.

For the bronze medal game, Chiefs brought back Thomas ‘Zero’ Johnson, then playing and coaching in Botswana, but could not halt the Pirates tide, led by ‘Chippa’ Moloi, who got the first goal.

Chiefs’‘ Ten-Ten’ Nzimande then calamitously scored the second for Pirates with an own goal off his head but Chiefs fought back through the guile of ‘Ace’ Ntsoelengoe, who scored two to level matters by half-time.

Then Chiefs went ahead after the break through Nzimande, atoning for his earlier error. But Moloi won the duel of skills with Kaizer Motaung in the second half and Bucs got the upper hand.

Remember Majoe made it 3-3 and then ‘Dancing Shoes’ Hartze put Pirates back in the lead. Majoe got his second of the game and Pirates were further ahead, 5-3. Jacob Masike beat Pirates goalkeeper Gerard van der Haer to bring it back to 5-4 in the closing stages but Pirates’ Hartze made sure of the 6-4 win with a late goal.

4 April, 1981 Orlando Pirates 3 Kaizer Chiefs 1 Champions of Champions final, second leg

Second-half substitute Henry ‘Mtofi’ Khumalo was give a heroes’ reception at the end of the game after engineering a remarkable victory for Pirates, two goals down on aggregate before he was brought on.

Chiefs were a goal up from the first leg and held out in the first half of the second match at a packed Orlando Stadium, then extended their aggregate lead when Peter Mokotedi scored right after interval.

Not even the most die-hard of Pirates’ fans would have then believed a comeback was possible but Khumalo, who had not exactly set Pirates alight since his move from Durban two years previously, turned the result right around.

Kagiso Mogale provided the first for Khumalo in the 64th minute with a defencesplitting pass and he got a second soon after.

Jingles Pereira handled the ball to present Pirates with a chance to win the trophy in the final minute of the game which Khumalo duly did by converting the resultant penalty.

3 November, 1990 Orlando Pirates 5 Kaizer Chiefs 1 National Soccer League

The finest hour for the Buccaneers in the history of the derby clash with their biggest winning margin over Chiefs.

Not only did Chiefs suffer a major humiliation against their arch rivals but the result effectively ended any chance they had of catching Mamelodi Sundowns in the title chase.

Pirates were playing under stand-in coach Johannes ‘Skipper’ Khomane after Dave Roberts had been fired five weeks earlier.

The writing was on the wall for AmaKhosi as early as the sixth minute when Sithole scored. Ernest Makhanya and Tebeho Moloi

added to the misery with goals before halftime.

Chiefs substitute Absalom Thindwa briefly reduced the deficit in the 57th minute but Rod Anley capped an outstanding performance with the last two goals in the 69th and 81st minutes.

Chiefs’ defence had been virtually non existent, especially after Mark Tovey had been dropped. “You could have driven a bus through it,” wrote one reporter.

25 September, 1993 Kaizer Chiefs 2 Orlando Pirates 3 National Soccer League

Pirates coach Phil Setshedi took the credit for the win with a strategy that had Marks Maponyane in midfield and Ackson Shimbala upfront, used as a decoy to lure Lucas Radebe out of position in the Chiefs defence.

Maponyane did not finish the game, however, sent off for a foul on Claudius Zviripayi by referee Stan Swart.

Chiefs’ coach Geoff Hudson chased journalists away from the change room after the loss, having already had much heat from the spectators over his decision to field young Brian Baloyi in goal rather than Botende Eshele.

Shimbala finally broke his goal scoring drought with a strike for Pirates that proved decisive securing the win with just three minutes left of the game as 60,000 watched the match.

But there were four goals before that with Chiefs twice coming from behind to level matters. Captain Nick ‘Bazooka’ Seshweni had Pirates ahead after 11 minutes but Thabang Lebese equalised in the 33rd minute. Then the Buccaneers’ lead was restored when Gavin Lane scored four minutes before half-time.

But Chiefs were back at 2-2 in the 63rd minute when former Pirates striker Pio Nogueira netted for AmaKhosi in only his second appearance after joining the club, only for Shimbala to have the final say.

2 November, 1996 Kaizer Chiefs 1 Orlando Pirates 4 BoB Save Super Bowl semifinal

The first hat-trick in 15 years in the derby match was scored as Jerry Sikhosana catapulted Pirates to a comprehensive win. There has not been one since, either.

Sikhosana joined an elite group of Ebison Mugoyo, who got three for Chiefs for 1975, and Henry ‘Mthofi’ Khumalo who scored that hat-trick for Pirates in 1981.

Chiefs could not believe what hit them and the thrashing was as a careful plan laid down by Pirates’ Russian coach Viktor Bondarenko. “It was simple to beat Chiefs,” he asserted, with the plan entailing that Lane sat on Pollen Ndlanya and the Chiefs midfield were prevented from picking up knockdown from their strikers.

Then Sikhosana was instructed to exploit Chiefs’ defensive weaknesses, primarily their lack of pace at the back. He was encouraged to use his speed and directness and it paid off with his hat-trick completed by the 47th minute.

“I think the fans no longer see me as the bad guy. They realise I’m not being selfish when I keep on trying to score. It’s my job and they appreciate it,” Sikhosana said later.

It was one of the best games all year but the Buccaneers could have had eight goals and gave Chiefs the same sort of run around in the last 10 minutes that Chiefs were used to dishing out to other teams.

It was too much for Lefa Gqosha, sent off after clattering into teenager Steve Lekoelea.

Sikhosana opened the score in the 18th minute and made it 2-0 just before half time. Then he got his third before David Modise pulled one back for a shell-shocked AmaKhosi. Helman Mkhalele made it four for Pirates in the 76th minute.