Gordon Igesund recalls Manning Rangers’ historic first PSL title

Gordon Igesund says Manning Rangers’ unlikely Premier Soccer League triumph 30 years ago remains one of the defining moments of his career, after the unfancied Durban club overcame a 9-1 defeat by Kaizer Chiefs to win the competition’s inaugural title.

The Mighty Maulers, as Manning Rangers were known, lifted the championship in the first 1996–97 PSL season, with Igesund becoming the first coach to win the new league.

The achievement came as South African domestic football entered a new era. The PSL was created by Orlando Pirates owner Irvin Khoza and Kaizer Chiefs counterpart Kaizer Motaung to replace the poorly administered National Soccer League, as the country’s top flight moved from a winter to a summer season.

Igesund still remembers how the squad was built, how pre-season was organised and how the campaign was planned alongside owner Kaycee Reddy and team manager Afzal Khan.

Speaking to Sunday Times in Cape Town this week, Igesund described the title-winning season as “an amazing time for us” and reflected on how Rangers had defied the better-resourced favourites, including Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs, Moroka Swallows and Mamelodi Sundowns.

“I don’t think it crossed anyone’s mind at that stage that we will go into another level in our football. All we wanted to do was just to be part of it and play,” Igesund said. “We had teams like Orlando Pirates, Moroka Swallows, Kaizer Chiefs, Santos and all the other teams that got together to play.

“To be able to sit here and think about the things that we used to do is fantastic. We are grateful for everything that everyone has done because our kids are on a different level because they can be what they want to be.

“If they want to be professional football players, they can do it because it is a good league and that’s important.”

The focus before the season had been on the leading Gauteng clubs, but Rangers’ preparations took a different direction after a humiliating Coca-Cola Challenge defeat by Chiefs. The competition served as a bridge while the old National Soccer League switched seasons.

“I inherited a team of players from the lower leagues. We put the team together and I remember we played against Chiefs and they beat us 9-1,” Igesund said.

“It was Red Nose Day [the charity drive popularised in South Africa in the 1990s] and we went to the match with our red noses on during warm-up. Chiefs hammered us and after the game everybody was showing us the ‘nine’ sign with their hands.”

The result prompted immediate action. Reddy met the squad at the airport in Durban, while Igesund and Khan began searching amateur clubs in and around the city for reinforcements.

“I said to him that we were outclassed and he told me to fix it. I worked closely with Afzal Khan and we went out there to look for players.

“We went to all the amateur clubs in and around Durban and we got players like Davies, Muir and also recruited established players like [Marcus] Mphafudi and [Charles] Yohane.”

Rangers soon turned their fortunes around, winning one match 9-0 after the defeat by Chiefs. Igesund eventually told the players they could challenge for the title, although he acknowledged that some initially thought he was being unrealistic.

“We won our first 11 games away from home. We had Grant [Johnson], Larsen, Koumantarakis, Jordan, Makhubela and we went on to win the league by eight points. That was an absolutely amazing time for us.”

The squad also included Liswa Nduti, Innocent Chikoya, Mark Davies, Bradley Muir, Warren du Pont and Solo Ndimande. Keryn Jordan and Gilbert Mushangazhike joined soon after the title triumph.

“They were a team that refused to lose. They would defend with their lives and when we were 1-0 up, we would win the match,” Igesund said.

Manning Rangers went on to become competitive during the first half-decade of the PSL, making Chatsworth Stadium their stronghold in Durban. However, years of financial difficulty eventually led to decline, and the club were relegated at the end of the 2004–05 season.

As the PSL marks its 30th anniversary, Igesund also paid tribute to the figures who helped establish the competition and rebuild South African football after the country’s long period outside international competition.

“A lot of credit has to go to a lot of people. We were out of international football for a long time and players of that era like Teenage Dladla and Jomo Sono missed out on opportunities.

“They missed out on opportunities to play for the national team because we were banned by Fifa. A lot of good work has been done by Dr Irvin Khoza, Dr Kaizer Motaung, Jomo Sono and many others.

“All of us played a role to get football to where it is now. We have come a long way and we keep on looking to get better. We are still behind in certain areas, but we are playing international football and recognised.

“We are going in the right direction, the league is fantastic. Over the last few years, it has been dominated by one team, but that has changed. I am proud to be part of the South African football history.”