Rowen Fernandez played a crucial role in helping Kaizer Chiefs secure back-to-back league titles under the late Ted Dumitru.
Nicknamed “Spider” due to his passion for spiders and snakes, the 46-year-old was beloved by the Khosination. Fernandez was signed by Kaizer Chiefs from Wits University in 2001 along with Stanton Fredericks. The two of them found success at Amakhosi before eventually moving to Europe years later.
He was initially brought in as an understudy to Brian Baloyi, who was on the brink of securing a lucrative contract in Europe. unfortunately for ‘Spiderman’, he was unable to make the move and later departed for Mamelodi Sundowns in 2004.
Rowen Fernandez made his Chiefs debut in the Vodacom Challenge against Ghanaian side Hearts of Oak at Royal Bafokeng Stadium on 30 June 2001. A few weeks later, the Springs-born ex-keeper made his PSL debut for Chiefs in a 2–1 win against Classic.
Rowen Fernandez won more than 10 trophies with Chiefs
Spider enjoyed his six-year spell at Chiefs winning more than 10 titles. His good form saw him earn his first cap for Bafana Bafana against Tunisia in 2004. He went on to represent his country on 23 occasions.
Fernandez joined the German Bundesliga side Arminia Bielefeld in June 2007 on a free transfer after his contract with Chiefs expired. In Germany, the ex-Bafana keeper teamed up with former Chiefs coach Ernst Middendorp, He spent four years with the German club before joining SuperSport United in 2011.
Following his retirement, Rowen Fernandez was appointed as their new goalkeeper coach at Pirates. In 2019, he became the goalkeeper coach for Highlands Park before joining Maritzburg United in 2020.
In 2022, it was announced that Rowen Fernandez left the club with Ernst Middendorp.
Does Fernandez make the top 10 best PSL keepers?
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