City and Stellies book top eight spots
THE Premiership reached its conclusion on Saturday as all 16 clubs reaped the rewards of their exploits in what has been the most bizarre season in recent history.
With Mamelodi Sundowns already crowned champions seven matches ago, the race for the second and final Caf Champions League spot and attempts to avoid relegation went down to the wire.
However, the Cape contingent arguably headed into the last round of fixtures with the least expectation on their shoulders as Cape Town City battled Kaizer Chiefs to see who would finish in fourth position in a dead rubber.
The Citizens showed great determination to play 45 minutes a man down and escaped with a 1-0 victory over Amakhosi at FNB Stadium, a result that saw them leapfrog their opponents into fourth place.
Stellenbosch FC retained their place in the top eight as their close victory over TS Galaxy saw them cement sixth place and qualified them for next season’s MTN8 knockout competition.
It has been a whirlwind campaign for both Cape teams as City had to, for the first time, navigate a season with the added duties of both the Champions League and later the Confederation Cup.
Stellies and their coach Steve Barker had to reinvent themselves after losing their captain, defender Zitha Kwinika, and last season’s club top-scorer Ashley du Preez.
City head coach Eric Tinkler was asked by SuperSport to briefly discuss his side’s 2022/23 campaign and the experienced mentor revealed his overall dissatisfaction.
“(We made a) poor start, and by poor start, I mean we were playing good football but the results weren’t coming,” he explained
Then we went through a period when we were playing terrible football but the results were coming, and then in the run-in of the season, we started to grind out results and play more positive football – the kind of football we like to play.
“The confidence, the spirit, and the mood in training grew.
“We finished off the season on a high, but I’m not happy because it’s not what I wanted – I wanted a positive start and to not necessarily finish higher than last season (second) but certainly get more points and score more goals and concede less.”
Due to their final-day exploits, City will face Chiefs in the opening round of the MTN8 next season, while Stellenbosch travel to thirdplaced SuperSport United.