PSL stadiums race to meet league standards after venue bans

Several South African football stadiums have undergone repairs and refurbishment after the Premier Soccer League (PSL) ruled that a number of grounds were unsuitable for hosting matches at the start of the season.

The situation has affected as many as six PSL teams, despite South Africa having hosted the 2010 Fifa World Cup. Sekhukhune United, AmaZulu, Stellenbosch, Richards Bay and Chippa United were among the clubs forced to move home fixtures after concerns were raised, chiefly about the condition of their pitches.

However, stadium managers have told Sowetan that their venues are now ready to stage PSL matches, pending final approval from the league.

Kaizer Chiefs are the latest club to face uncertainty over a home venue. Their usual stadium has been booked for next weekend’s Springboks-All Blacks match, meaning Amakhosi must find an alternative ground for their league meeting with Siwelele on 5 September.

Chiefs have proposed Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium for the fixture, although the venue is still waiting for the PSL to give its final approval.

Moses Mabhida Stadium manager Sijabulile Ntuli said the ground had completed the improvements requested by the league and was ready to host the match.

“We’re good now. We’ve an agreement with Chiefs; they are bringing their game against Siwelele to Mabhida … it’s confirmed between us,” Ntuli said.

“However, everything depends on the PSL signing everything off and being happy. We are confident that everything is okay now.”

Ntuli also explained why Moses Mabhida had not hosted a match this season, despite images circulating online showing a pitch in excellent condition.

“The reason … is that the stadium has been under maintenance, but it hasn’t been closed. The engineers advised that games can be played during construction.

“We were still doing major work on the roof, but now we agreed that we will pause that process when there are games since the pitch is now ready. You can’t do roofing while there’s a game.”

On Wednesday, Richards Bay played host to Chiefs at Princess Magogo Stadium in KwaMashu, rather than at Moses Mabhida. Richards Bay’s customary home venue in Umhlathuze is currently prohibited from staging matches.

The decision generated questions because the Princess Magogo pitch appeared to be in considerably poorer condition than the surface at Richards Bay’s banned stadium. The KwaMashu ground has not hosted a professional match for five years.

AmaZulu, the main tenants of Moses Mabhida, have also been using the nearby Kings Park Stadium for their home fixtures.

Kings Park was likewise used by Chippa United after the Eastern Cape club were required to move matches away from both Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Gqeberha and Buffalo City Stadium in KuGompo. Those two grounds were undergoing pitch rehabilitation work.

Chippa confirmed on Tuesday that the PSL had approved both stadiums for future matches.

PSL chief operating officer Ronnie Schloss said the issue affecting the grounds was straightforward.

“The basic problem was that the pitches weren’t up to standard.”

Sekhukhune United have also been displaced while work is carried out on the field at New Peter Mokaba Stadium. The club have instead used Seshego Stadium and Old Peter Mokaba Stadium.

Mantlako Sebaka, sports manager for Polokwane municipality, said the New Peter Mokaba Stadium had now completed its rehabilitation and was ready for PSL action.

“The pitch is ready for PSL matches, but we will wait for them to give it the go-ahead,” Sebaka said.

The PSL website still lists Royal Bafokeng Stadium as the venue for the Chiefs-Siwelele fixture. But Emile Smith, acting managing director of Royal Bafokeng Sports, said on Wednesday that the match was unlikely to take place at the Rustenburg stadium.

Marumo Gallants, who have registered the World Cup venue as their home ground, are scheduled to host Polokwane City there the day before.