JOHANNESBURG - Ahead of Saturday's MTN8 final clash between SuperSport United and Cape Town City, IOL Sport has looked back at the four most memorable finals in the competition's history.
2008 - Kaizer Chiefs 0 - 0 Mamelodi Sundowns at Kings Park Stadium
A waterlogged pitch threatened to derail this MTN8 final, the first ever under the new sponsors. But when it did get going - two days later at the same venue - it was all kinds of memorable. That Amakhosi were crowned champions via the lottery of the penalty shoot-out should not overshadow the fact that this fixture was highly entertaining and, in more ways than one, gave the crowd their money’s worth. These were two teams that were scoring for fun en route to the final, making their encounter highly tactical, but entertaining at the same time even as they were battling to break the deadlock. Chiefs won the ensuing penalty shoot-out 4-3.
2009 - Lamontville Golden Arrows 6 - 0 Ajax Cape Town at Orlando Stadium
It definitely wasn’t a dream final for the sponsors - two unfancied teams that defied the odds to reach this stage of the tournament. There was a marketing drive to get a decent crowd into this neutral venue, with the hope that the football on the night would more than compensate. And oh boy did it do just that and a whole lot more. Abafana Bes’thende hit the Urban Warriors for six without reply - two goals before half-time and an incredible four more in the second half. With this empathic victory, Arrows claimed their first ever major trophy in topflight football.
2011 - Orlando Pirates 1 - 0 Kaizer Chiefs at FNB Stadium
This was the first Soweto Derby for the new title sponsors. Quite typical these days of a clash between Amakhosi and the Buccaneers, this clash lacked goals, but it nevertheless had high entertainment value. After the full 90 minutes they were still deadlocked, and then Oupa Manyisa, the Pirates skipper at the time, unleashed one of his trademark long range shots, which surprised goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune, the ball going through his legs for the goal that ultimately won Bucs the trophy.
WATCH| @CapeTownCityFC leftback, Edmilson Dove says they will work hard to win the #MTN8Final this year. They face @SuperSportFC in Durban on Saturday. Who do you think will win the cup this year? #wafawafa pic.twitter.com/GJa8tthHoo
— MTN8 Wafa Wafa! (@MTN8) September 27, 2018
2016 - Bidvest Wits 3 - 0 Mamelodi Sundowns at Mbombela Stadium
On a wet surface in Nelspruit, the Clever Boys gave the Brazilians a proper hiding as they lifted this trophy (Top 8) for only the third time in the history of the club. There had been a lot of talk that Sundowns would prove too strong, especially as they prepared to go for both the MTN8 and the CAF Champions League titles. But 35 seconds into the clash Wits were up 1-0 thanks to a beautifully taken first time strike by Daine Klate, and long before the half-time break they’d scored a scrappy second through Eleazer Rodgers. Klate grabbed his second and a third for Wits, starting the celebrations with more than 30 minutes before the final whistle sounded.