WATCH | Willard Katsande on Ajax CT’s golden generation and the title that got away

Willard Katsande has opened up about the heartbreak of Ajax Cape Town (now Cape Town Spurs) losing the league title on the final day of the season during the 2010/11 campaign.

A young Ajax outfit, under the tutelage of Dutchman Foppe de Haan, punched above their weight for the entire season. The team featured the likes of Keagan Dolly, Thulani Serero, George Maluleka, Thulani Hlatshwayo, Khama Billiat, and Katsande, who were all in the early days of their careers.

On the final day of the season, all the Urban Warriors had to do was beat Maritzburg United (now Durban City); they would finish the season ahead of Orlando Pirates. The Sea Robbers needed results to go their way to finish ahead of the Capetonians.

Unfortunately, De Haan’s youngsters could only manage a 2-2 draw at home against the Team of Choice, while Pirates got the job done when they beat Golden Arrows 2-1 at Orlando Stadium.

Speaking on the iDiski Done podcast on YouTube, Katsande said celebrations had been planned and shirts printed in case they won the league.

“We had champagnes and T-shirts written ‘champions’, that’s the sad part,” the former Zimbabwean international, who would go on to win two league titles with Kaizer Chiefs in 2012/13 and 2014/15, said on the podcast.

“We had to burn them because how will you parade that? Clayton Daniels had to drink (the champagne) because of the stress. That was not a nice feeling.”

After that season, Ajax’s squad was broken up in the years that followed, and the players went on to have good careers.

Dolly and Billiat won it all with Sundowns, while Maluleka and Katsande were brilliant for Chiefs. Hlatshwayo captained Bidvest Wits to the league title in 2017. Serero’s career took him to the UEFA Champions League, and in 2013, he was the best player on the pitch as Ajax Amsterdam outclassed a Barcelona outfit that featured Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez, and Andres Iniesta.

IOL Sport