Normally composed coach Roger de Sa looked ready to tear his hair out in frustration as Bidvest Wits conceded a winning lead in the final five minutes for the third time this season in an absorbing 1-1 Premier League draw against Ajax Cape Town at a rain-splattered Newlands Stadium in Cape Town on Sunday afternoon.

Not for the first time, the timely match-saver for Ajax with an 87th minute equaliser was the foraging Franklin Cale, whose ice-cool goal on-the-run through a packed penalty area of players enabled the Cape Town side to ease away from the indignity of occupying bottom position in the log - a fate now suffered of all teams by Kaizer Chiefs.

Although Wits appeared to be heading for a win that would have placed them in second position behind Orlando Pirates after top PSL goalscorer Calvin Kadi continued his spree with his fifth goal of the season in as many games in the 65th minute, Ajax well-deserved a share of the spoils and it would have been difficult to dispute the sentiment of coach Muhsin Ertugral afterwards that "we deserved the equaliser for the manner in which the players stuck to their guns and never stopped trying."

Indeed, Ajax were generally in control of the opening period in which both teams suffered from the widespread PSL malaise of squandering gilt-edged opportunities, although only an instinctive save from Darren Keet in the 28th minute prevented the irrepressible Cale from scoring.

Wits overcame Ajax's early ascendancy with admirable professionalism and dogged defending and came back in the second half eager to annex three valuable points.

And when Sibusiso Vilakazi split the Ajax defence to give the potent Kadi the opportunity of scoring from close-range passed a helpless Hans Vonk, it looked as though The Students were indeed set to return to Johannesburg with three valuable points and their first away win over the Cape Town club in six years.

But that final last five minutes bogey was to strike again and foil Wits from what would otherwise be a striking position in the Premier League title race.

And on a cold and freezing afternoon, Ertugral, who had come onto the field in the second half wearing a second jacket, leaped into the air like a gazelle and had his spirits and those of the sparse crowd warmed by Cale's equaliser.

De Sa, meanwhile, gained comfort from the fact that "it is never easy beating Ajax in Cape Town and we took the field with a young line-up because of five injured players."