Chiefs’ magnificent run of 12 wins in a row this season, during which they have scored 21 goals and conceded just twice, has ushered them into the best winning spell in all local competitions since the start of the modern day PSL in August, 1996. Amakhosi have equalled the record set by Sundowns, who put together 14 successive wins in domestic PSL competitions between January 13 and February 28, 2007 – although their overall winning run including continental competitions got a slight dent when they were held to a one-all draw by Desportivo Maputo in Mozambique in a first-leg, first-round CAF Champions League tie. Despite that draw in Maputo, Sundowns still managed to stretch their unbeaten run to 19 games and during that period they won 11 League games in a row, won another three Champions League matches (two draws) and had three more victories in the Absa Cup. That 11-game winning spell in the League – which came under the guidance of Gordon Igesund – set the Brazilians on course to winning the Absa Premiership title at the end of the 2006/07 season, winning games against Orlando Pirates, Chiefs, SuperSport United and Moroka Swallows during that impressive run. It remains the longest consecutive winning run in the League since the start of the PSL. Sundowns won 10 League games in a row last season on their way to lifting their sixth League title, while Chiefs racked up nine consecutive wins in the same season before their 2013/14 title chase petered out. However, Chiefs now hold the record of being the first club in South African top-flight football to win 12 consecutive games in all official competitions in a single PSL season. Chiefs have won their opening seven League games, recorded four victories on their way to lifting the MTN8 trophy and have another win in the bag in the Telkom Knockout, which has left fans of the country’s most supported football club in paradise and sensing a historic clean sweep this season. While just a quarter of the League campaign has been played to date, Chiefs have already opened a seven-point lead at the top and are guaranteed of their place there until at least a third of the season has been played at 10 games. What has made Chiefs’ run remarkable is the fact that they have kept clean sheets in 10 of those 12 games with Mpumalanga Black Aces and University of Pretoria standing out as the two clubs that have been able to breach Amakhosi’s defence, which has gone for the past four games minus inspirational goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune. In a League that rarely has teams winning seven games in a row and generally thin on consistency Chiefs have already won more games than what teams finishing in the bottom half usually manage at the end of their allocated 30 games for the season. Though Amakhosi have been unbeaten for long runs in previous years, they have never been able to clock a dozen wins in a row – they avoided defeat in 12 of the opening games of the 2005/06 season but they drew eight of those games and were also unbeaten in the first 13 games of the 1996/97 season but they drew five matches during that spell. Last season they won nine League games in a row between November 9, 2013 and February 5 this year before falling off in the race to hand over the championship to Sundowns. However, right now the big question is, who will stop Kaizer Chiefs from stretching their winning record even further? Their next game is on October 19 against Ajax Cape Town in Cape Town – a fixture they historically do not fare well in. If Chiefs manage to beat Ajax, they will hold the record of the longest winning streak in PSL history (15) and be one win short of equaling Sundowns’ record of 11 straight League wins set in 2007.
Posted on: Mon, 06 Oct 2014 17:30:57 +0000
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