When Swallows broke the record for the most number of draws last season, they were given the monicker of ‘draw kings’, but who are the real South African Premiership draw kings over the past decade?
Last season, when Brandon Truter was in charge at Swallows, the club drew 20 of their 30 games in the league, a record for the most amount of draws which had previously stood at 17, with both Free State Stars and Santos doing this in the 2005/06 season, while SuperSport United drew 17 in the 2012/2013 campaign.
This season the baton looked to have been passed to AmaZulu as Benni McCarthy’s men have drawn 12 of their 19 games, which is almost the same two-thirds ratio as to what Swallows achieved last season.
Until their back-to-back wins this week, Usuthu had drawn seven consecutive games, with coach Benni McCarthy going as far as saying, “If we keep picking up one point, one point, one point, one point – then we become the new Swallows.”
But over the past decade, who has drawn the most?
Very often we single out teams because of a high number in one season, like in Swallows’ case, but are there a few others who actually perhaps deserve to wear the crown more?
Had we compliled this at the end of last season, the team who would have run away with the draw kings title would have been now-defunct Bloemfontein Celtic.
Prior to selling their franchise at the start of 2021/2022 to Royal AM, Celtic had 101 draws in just 250 games. At 40.4% Siwelele were clearly the leaders in sharing.
It should be noted that only eight of the DStv Premiership’s current clubs were part of the PSL top flight ten seasons ago. Add to that, three of those eight teams, Chippa United, Golden Arrows and AmaZulu spent brief periods in the second tier.
So who has the most?
Well, while Swallows hold the record for the most draws in a season, it is their neighbours who have drawn the most over the past decade.
1) Orlando Pirates 35.1%. Pirates have drawn 101 of their 288 games played since the start of the 2012/2013 season. The most draws they had in one season, was in 2016/2017 with fifteen draws. They have drawn nine of their seventeen games this season.
2) Kaizer Chiefs 34.9% Chiefs are only just behind Pirates, having drawn 100 of their 286 games in the same time. The highest they had in one season was 13 draws, which they achieved in the 2015/2016 campaign, while they drew 12 games on their way to winning the title in 2012/2013.
3) SuperSport United 34.2%. SuperSport have drawn 98 of their 286 games. The most they had in one season was the previous record, when they drew 17 in 2012/2013.
4) Maritzburg United 34.1%. The Pietermaritzburg side has drawn 98 of their 287 games. Perhaps the most ‘consistent’ drawing team, their highest in a season was 12, which they’ve done on two occasions, in 2012/2013 and also in 2019/2020.
5) Chippa United 33.5%. Chippa are technically next with 96 out of 286 games, however, 30 of those games were in the NFD, where they got 7 draws. In the 2017/2018 season they had the most draws in the league, sharing the points in 16 games. Their top flight draw percentage is 34.4%
6) Golden Arrows 31.9%. Arrows have drawn 91 out of 285 games. But they spent a season in the NFD, where they drew 12 of those 30 games in the second tier. So it’s actually 83 draws in 255 top flight games, which is 32.5%.
7) AmaZulu 31.4%. And then there are this season’s challengers. During this period they spent two seasons in the NFD, where they draw 14 times. Add to that 77 draws in 229 top flight games, and in that period they had 91 draws. However, their top flight percentage is 33.6%
8) Mamelodi Sundowns 27.8%. Of the eight teams, unsurprisingly it is Sundowns who has drawn the least, drawing 80 out of their 287 games. The most draws they had was also in 2012/2013, when they drew 12 games. That was the season that Pitso Mosimane took over midway through the season, and Sundowns ended 10th. They have won the league every season since, except for 2016/2017 when they finished second behind Bidvest Wits.
The other eight teams are all relatively new, with Baroka and Cape Town City having only featured in the top flight since the 2016/2017 season, Stellenbosch are into their third season, while Swallows and TS Galaxy and Marumo Gallants are less than two seasons old. Sekhukhune United and Royal AM only began their top flight careers this season.
While their numbers are a lot lower due to games played there are a few contenders to usurp Pirates and Chiefs in the near future, and of course, it’s Swallows who are leading the way.
Cape Town City have drawn 30.3%, Baroka 37.3%,
Swallows 57%, Marumo Gallants (TTM) 38.8%, TS Galaxy 36.1%
Royal AM have drawn 31% while Sekhukhune have only drawn 18.7%
