News of former Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates striker Marc Batchelor’s death shocked the South African football fraternity on Monday evening.
The retired footballer was gunned down in Bryanston, Johannesburg and police confirmed he died after he was shot several times in his car.
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It is time to pay tribute to Batchelor and Goal takes a look at his successful career:
History:
Batchelor was born in Johannesburg 49 years ago and started his football career for Wanderers FC, Balfour Park, Berea Park, and Defence FC at amateur level.
Dynamos granted him his big break in 1990 and he spent two seasons with the club, having made his professional debut against Qwa Qwa Stars.
Bidvest Wits came calling for Batchelor's services in 1992 and he established himself as one of the top strikers in the country, as he netted 25 goals in 62 starts during his two-year stay with the team.
His exploits attracted interest from the biggest clubs in the National Soccer League (NSL) and Orlando Pirates won the race for his signature in 1994.
Nicknamed 'Big Animal', Batchelor enjoyed a lot of success with the Buccaneers, forming part of the team which won four major trophies.
SuperSport United snapped the Big Animal from Pirates ahead of the first-ever Premier Soccer League (PSL) season in 1996 and he scored seven goals in 33 matches.
He then spent a season with Matsatsantsa before securing a big move to Kaizer Chiefs, where he won one major trophy during his three-year spell with the club.
A move to Mamelodi Sundowns then followed during the 1999/2000 PSL campaign and Batchelor helped the Brazilians win some silverware, although he was a bit-part player.
In 2001, Moroka Swallows signed Batchelor, who was in the twilight of his career and he retired from professional football in 2003, having scored 10 goals in 24 starts during his stint with the Dube Birds.
Achievements:
The big centre forward, who was known for his ability to excel in the number nine role, tasted success when he was on the books of big clubs.
Batchelor won the National Soccer League (NSL) title with Pirates in 1994 which was his first season with the club, before helping the Soweto giants make history on the African continent.
The Buccaneers became the first Southern African club to win the Caf Champions Cup in 1995 with Batchelor making two appearances for the team in the tournament.
Batchelor also lifted the Caf Super Cup and BP Top Eight Cup in 1996, his final year with Pirates.
He left the Buccaneers having scored eight goals in 17 starts and one of his goals come in the Soweto Derby against Chiefs.
Also nicknamed Batch, Batchelor clinched his next major trophy with Pirates' arch-rivals Chiefs having joined Amakhosi from SuperSport in August 1997.
Batch grabbed an assist as Chiefs defeated Sundowns to clinch the 1998 Rothmans Cup with the encounter having ended in a 2-2 stalemate, and Amakhosi went on to win 2-1 on penalties.
The frontman had the distinction of scoring for both teams in the Soweto Derby as he netted for Chiefs as they defeated Pirates 3-1 in the 1998 Rothmans Cup semi-finals first-leg clash.
Batchelor won his last club silverware with Sundowns, where he lifted the PSL title, but he was mostly used as a substitute by Serbian coach Paul Dolezar.
He retired having helped Swallows survive relegation in his first season with the club.