Former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper Hans Vonk, who has 43 international caps, eagerly followed Kaizer Chiefs' match against Dutch Eredivisie (Premiership) PEC Zwolle side in Meppel on Tuesday evening.

Amakhosi won 1-0.

Vonk played most of his career for Dutch side Heerenveen, from 1996 to 2004, before finishing his illustrious career with two stints at Ajax Cape Town (2006-2008 and 2009-2011).

He was also the technical manager of Ajax Cape Town, which changed its name to Cape Town Spurs in 2020.

Before kick-off, a number of former Ajax Cape Town players come to greet Vonk, including Brandon Petersen, Dillan Solomons, Tashreeq Morris and Rushwin Dortley.

"I can imagine that the players needed to adjust to the pitches in their first few friendly matches in Holland," he says, "the fields here are softer compared to what they are used to in South Africa.

"The ball circulation is also quicker, especially when facing quality Eredivisie sides. It's something the players needed to adapt to."

The Glamour Boys experienced a challenging first 15 minutes in the first half against PEC Zwolle, with the opponent really performing well, but thereafter they manage to come back into the game.

"I like the organisation of the team," Vonk analyses, while watching the match, before highlighting a few players: "Jersey number 12" (Nkosingiphile Ngcobo), "number 74, the left-back" (Nkanyiso Shinga) and "number 5" (Sibongiseni Mthethwa).

The former goalkeeper isn't worried that Amakhosi lost their three-pre-season practice matches before the epic win over PEC Zwolle.

"I am not really interested in those losses," he comments. "It's pre-season and that's all about getting ready for the season. Besides that, the players had to adapt to the different circumstances in Holland and the strong Dutch opponents they played against."

"For sure, as a goalkeeper I hated conceding a goal and losing, even in pre-season. However, it's all about the new experiences in Holland, about playing matches against competitive sides, getting the rhythm right, building a team... That's what a coach is looking at during pre-season."

"The pre-season camp in the Netherlands must have been a great experience for the whole team. I am sure they will all have learnt a lot."

Vonk furthermore points out that he always had the greatest admiration for the Kaizer Chiefs supporters when he still played in Cape Town, and even now.

"They were always very sympathetic, and I never saw them in a fight or something like that. It was really about Love & Peace!"

Vonk enthusiastically does a high five with a few Amakhosi fans after Naledi Hlongwane scores the only goal of the money.

Looking forward towards the upcoming season, the tall South African says: "I really hope that Chiefs will be able to return to the level where they belong. And with that, I mean, being competitive and challenging for trophies."

Details for Kaizer Chiefs' last pre-season training match in the Netherlands:

FC Twente - Kaizer Chiefs

Wednesday, 16 July, kick-off at 19:00

Sportpark De Scheetheuvel in Delden (Rood Zwart)

The entrance fee for this second of the back-to-back matches will cost 12.50 Euro, while youngsters until the age of 12 will pay 5 Euro.

Tickets can also be bought digitally: kaartverkoop.fctwente.nl/dashboard - 'BESTELLEN' (on the Dutch language side) or 'ORDER' (English language).

Both Sportparks will be open an hour before the start of the game.

The match will be live streamed on YouTube, @KaizerChiefsFootballClub

The live streams will start about 15 minutes before kick-off.