Pirates loss in DR Congo ends record run

Orlando Pirates’ 3-0 loss in the Democratic Republic of Congo brought an abrupt end to a club record of eight wins in a row and also a bid to try and beat the record of matches without goals conceded.

Pirates were handed a heavy defeat by FC St Eloi Lupopo in the first leg of their African Champions League second round tie after winning their previous eight games – four in the league, two in the Champions League, their Carling Knockout first round victory, and the 3-0 extra time triumph over Stellenbosch in the MTN8 final.

In each of those matches, Pirates have kept a clean sheet, and the eight-match run is also the best for the club in the Premier Soccer League era.

Before travelling to Lubumbashi over the weekend, their last goal conceded was in the 1-1 draw with Mamelodi Sundowns at Atteridgeville when Iqraam Rayners put Sundowns ahead after 17 minutes, only for Kamogelo Sebelebele to equalise with 17 minutes left to play.

Pirates went 826 minutes without letting in a goal before Lupopo’s Wanet Kashala stunned them with a third-minute strike on Sunday.

The record for the most matches in a row without conceding belongs to the now-defunct Wits University from near the start of the 2003-04 season.

Roger de Sa’s side started their campaign with a 2-1 win over Kaizer Chiefs in the Top Eight competition and then went on to play 12 successive games without conceding a goal, starting with two in a row against Moroka Swallows (in the league on August 22, 2003, and then the Top Eight), followed by Chiefs (league), Jomo Cosmos, Mamelodi Sundowns, Lamontville Golden Arrows, Ajax Cape Town, Hellenic, Black Leopards (twice in a row in the Coca-Cola Cup and league), SuperSport United, and Cosmos again, in the cup.

The run came to an end after 1121 minutes (18.6 hours) when Chiefs beat them 3-0 in the Coca-Cola Cup semifinal on November 26, with Sibusiso Dlamini’s goal bringing the streak to an end.

That game was, ironically, the second in what became a run of nine matches without conceding for Chiefs the same season – the second best by a team in the PSL era.

It started for Chiefs on November 9, 2003, when they beat Manning Rangers and extended with wins over Wits (Coca-Cola Cup semi), Dynamos, Silver Stars (Coca-Cola Cup final), Pirates, Zulu Royals, Santos, Hellenic, and Arrows.

It ended after 880 minutes (14.6 hours) when Malawian Russell Mwafulirwa scored for Cosmos in a 1-1 league draw on February 22, 2004.

That proved a remarkable season for records because SuperSport achieved the feat of seven wins in a row with seven clean sheets also in the 2003-04 campaign. That was the best combination before Pirates beat it in the last weeks.

SuperSport began their run with a 5-0 home victory over Namibia’s Civics in the Champions League, then beat Sundowns in the league; Cosmos, Civics again in the second leg in Windhoek; Rangers, Wits, and then Zulu Royals in the second round of the Absa Cup. The run of wins and clean sheets ended with a 1-1 draw in Mauritius in the second round of the Champions League against AS Port Louis 2000.