STATS: The Biggest Wins In PSL History

The biggest win in the Premier Soccer League last season was Sundowns’ 5-0 win over Maritzburg 5-0 in October. The result embodied the fate that would befall both teams later in the season, with Sundowns ending up as runaway champions while Maritzburg were relegated. But what are the biggest wins in Premier Soccer League history? We dug through the history books to examine the largest thrashings in the last 28 years.

Manning Rangers 7-0 Hellenic – 8 August 2001

Clive Barker’s Manning Rangers hosted Steve Haupt’s Hellenic on the opening weekend of the 2001/2 season. They had narrowly survived relegation the previous season by scoring more goals than Bloemfontein Celtic. The two teams ended in 3rd bottom and 2nd bottom on 34 points with a -11 goal difference but Rangers had 14 more goals than Celtic. The likes of Clinton Larsen and Fadlu Davids played for Rangers on the day, even though none scored. Scara Ngobese started for Hellenic, but together with his team, they had a torrid day.

Ishmael Maluleke’s goal in the opening five minutes set the tone before Mongezi Radebe joined in the fun. Another Maluleke goal was followed by efforts from Jabulani Ndwandwe and Nkhiphitheni Matombo. At half-time, the hosts led 5-0, one of four instances in PSL history where a team led by 5 or more goals in a league game at half-time. Japhet Zwane and Gilbert Mushangazhike would later add to the scoresheet, securing what was the biggest PSL victory at the time. The record would stand for another three years.

SuperSport United 8-1 Zulu Royals – 6 June 2004

In 2002, Mr. Sisa Bikisha took ownership of AmaZulu Football Club and briefly changed the name to Zulu Royals. But the name change did not result in a change in fortunes, as the team finished the campaign at the bottom of the table with just 5 wins throughout. The nadir of their season was the 8-1 defeat to SuperSport United, which confirmed their relegation from the top flight. In the opposite dugout, Pitso Mosimane had already established himself as a top-level coach. His first two seasons had resulted in two impressive 2nd place finishes, behind Santos & Pirates and this was his 3rd season at the club.

In June 2004, they went into the last game of the season in 4th place, needing three points and a favour from Chiefs (facing 3rd place Wits). A 1-1 draw between Chiefs and Wits was a favourable result for Mosimane’s men, but SuperSport went beyond three points to equal the PSL record for the biggest winning margin in a league game. They went one better on goals scored (8), but conceded one. In direct contrast to the Rangers-Hellenic record that was set on the first day of the season, this one was set on the final day of the campaign. 

Zulu Royals opened the scoring that day, with Phumlani Mkhize’s 24th-minute effort. By half-time, Ricardo Katza & Mandla Zwane helped overturn the deficit. Second-half goals from Katza and Grant Johnston extended the lead to 4-1 before a 4-goal flurry in the final 10 minutes sealed a record-equalling win. It was the 3rd time in PSL history that a team scored 6+ in the 2nd half of a game – something that has happened only twice since.

SuperSport 7-0 Maritzburg – 14 October 2011

We had to wait a whole seven years for the next Premier League win of 7+ goals, but again it was the same team that spoiled us before. This time Gavin Hunt was at the helm as SuperSport United hosted Ian Palmer’s Maritzburg United. SuperSport was top of the league table and one of two teams unbeaten at the time, so it was a tricky trip for the Team of Choice at the end of Q1. However, Maritzburg were the unbeaten team, and a win here would have taken them to the top of the table. Few could have foreseen what would follow that Friday, as SuperSport equaled the biggest winning margin in a league game in PSL history.

3-0 at half-time remained 3-0 until the final 20 minutes, and a regulation win was on the cards for SuperSport. However, a brace from substitute Percival Maluleke contributed to an emphatic win, with Mogogi Gabonamong and Ashley Hartog adding the other goals. SuperSport would stay at the top until the end of November, but later slid down the table and ended the season in 3rd. Maritzburg, meanwhile, would win just one of their next seven games, before letting Ian Palmer go. In came Ernst Middendorp for the second half of the season, with 3 wins in 15 games ultimately enough for an 11th-place finish. The 2011 rout represented the last time we saw a team win by 7+ goals.