Stellenbosch all set to challenge for the big league
THE WESTERN Cape this week launches a concerted effort to catapult another football club into the topflight Abs Premiership when Stellenbosch FC participate in the end-of-season promotion play-offs.
With regard to the format, the play-offs are a three-team round-robin league featuring the National First Division (NFD) clubs which finished second and third – Black Leopards and Stellenbosch – and the team that ended second-last in the elite league: Baroka FC. The eventual winner joins NFD champions Thanda Royal Zulu in the PSL next season.
Stellenbosch kick off the play-offs on Wednesday when they host Baroka at the Athlone Stadium (kick-off 3pm). The club, previously known as Vasco da Gama, is now based in the Cape Winelands and have had a sound, consistent NFD campaign under coaches Sammy Troughton and Steve Barker.
Usually, midweek games such as this will start at 7.30pm, but the club’s wily chief operations officer, Edries Burton, a former Bafana Bafana defender, explained why they had decided to play the game in the afternoon.
“It’s our home game, so it’s about giving ourselves a little extra advantage,” said Burton. “We have played the majority of our games in the NFD in the afternoon, so that is what we are accustomed to. Also, because of the Cape conditions at the moment, it’s also a little slippery in the evening.”
Baroka, though, won’t be too concerned. Looking back at their season, they’ve certainly found the Mother City a rather welcoming place – a good luck charm if you will. The Polokwane-based club has played in the Cape three times this season and won every game: beating Cape Town City and Ajax Cape Town in the league and FC Cape Town in the Nedbank Cup. It was, in fact, the weekend’s 1-0 win over Ajax at the Cape Town Stadium that sealed them the play-off spot ahead of Highlands Park.
But Burton is quietly confident that Stellenbosch can pull off a big surprise and be promoted. They are making every effort to ensure they are ready and prepared for the challenge.
“We sent coaches to watch both Baroka and Highlands at the weekend to make sure that we were prepared for any scenario,” said Burton. “There is a positive vibe in the camp. But we know we have to have respect for the opposition as they are, after all, a PSL club.
“But we are positive, the technical staff is upbeat, and we are just making sure we have all the bases covered.”