Iqraam Rayners targets 100-goal milestone in South Africa’s top flight

Iqraam Rayners has begun the latest stage of his chase for a place among the South African top-flight’s all-time leading scorers after opening his season’s account for Mamelodi Sundowns.

The 30-year-old scored in Sundowns’ 2-0 victory over Milford on Wednesday, taking his career tally for South Africa’s top-tier clubs to 83 goals.

Rayners now needs 17 more goals to reach 100, a mark achieved by only seven players in the history of the Premier Soccer League (PSL). The list is headed by Peter Shalulile, who has scored 134 goals.

The other players to have passed the 100-goal mark are Siyabonga Nomvethe, Bradley Grobler, Daniel Mudau, Mabhudi Khenyeza, Manuel ‘Tico-Tico’ Bucuane and Collins Mbesuma.

Grobler is the only member of that group still active. The remaining players have retired from professional football.

Reaching three figures would also see Rayners move beyond several established names in the PSL scoring rankings. Bernard Parker has 86 goals, Katlego ‘Mahoota’ Mashego scored 88, while Wilfred Mugeyi and Lehlohonolo Majoro are both on 91.

Khama Billiat, with 97 goals, is the closest player above Rayners who has not yet reached 100. Billiat remains active, although he is now playing in Zimbabwe for Scottland FC.

Rayners’ pursuit of the milestone comes with one significant qualification. Goals he scored while playing in South Africa’s lower divisions do not count towards the PSL’s all-time top-flight list.

He scored 19 goals during the 2018/19 campaign as he finished as the leading scorer in the Motsepe Foundation Championship. Those goals are excluded from his current total.

His goals for Santos during the club’s time in the second tier are also not included.

The rankings cover goals scored in all official competitions by players representing clubs competing in South Africa’s top division. Rayners’ total therefore reflects only the goals he has scored for top-flight clubs, rather than his complete record across every level of South African football.

His first goal of the new season for Mamelodi Sundowns has moved him 17 goals away from the landmark. A successful campaign could put him in the company of the PSL’s most prolific scorers and take him past a number of notable former South Africa internationals and top-flight forwards.

Peter Shalulile’s 134-goal record remains the leading target, but Rayners’ immediate objective is to become the next player to join the exclusive 100-goal club.