After a strong start, Orlando Pirates were eventually pretenders to the throne of Mamelodi Sundowns in the Betway Premiership, and a club legend has put forward his reason why.
For the third season running, Pirates finished runners-up in the league behind perennial champions Sundowns.
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Bucs appeared to have come of age in Jose Riveiro's third season and could hold their own on the continent, the furthest they've gone under the Spaniard in the CAF Champions League, before a heart-breaking semi-final exit.
They came close to setting up a Champions League final with Miguel Cardoso's men, their rivals in the domestic league.
So why couldn't they keep the same competitive edge in the league up to the end, after finishing 12 points adrift?
"Sundowns have too much depth. They don't experience challenges if they have bookings or injuries to key players, if key players lose form, or are unavailable due to personal issues, bereavements, illness (etc)," Eugene Zwane suggested, speaking to KickOff.com.
"They just don't have a challenge because this one goes out, the same quality or better quality comes in, you see.
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"They were weakened through injury in key parts of the team in crucial stages of the league and they did not have the quality to replace the injured (or unavailable) players," stated the former Pirates defender.
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
