“PSL Is To Blame For Sundowns vs. Sekhukhune Clash Cancellation”

The cancellation of the Nedbank Cup quarter-final match between Mamelodi Sundowns and Sekhukhune United at Lucas Moripe Stadium on Saturday night, the PSL is being blamed for poor planning and communication, Sportswire has learnt.

The PSL released a lengthy statement on Friday night announcing the last-minute cancellation. Sportswire has been informed that the cancellation stemmed from a scheduling conflict, as fans were expected to attend an earlier, free match and potentially remain for the paid Nedbank Cup game.

The South African Football Association (SAFA) had confirmed well in advance that they would host the FIFA Women’s Under-17 World Cup qualifier against Nigeria at the venue. All necessary information had been provided to FIFA.

However, the PSL, responsible for booking venues for cup competitions, had confirmed weeks prior that the Sundowns-Sekhukhune match would also be played at Lucas Moripe Stadium.

Sportswire understands that both matches were intended to be held at the same venue. The key issue was that the SA Under-17’s World Cup qualifier, a free event, was scheduled for 15:00.

The PSL feared that a large number of people would attend the free Women’s Under-17 World Cup qualifier and remain in the stadium for the later Sundowns-Sekhukhune match, resulting in lost gate revenue.

Security personnel would have been unable to remove the fans who arrived early.

Consequently, the PSL decided to cancel the Nedbank Cup match entirely, aiming to prevent fans who attended the World Cup qualifier from watching the later game for free.

According to an insider, SAFA had initially offered to move the World Cup qualifier to Dobsonville Stadium. However, the venue was unavailable due to a prior booking, forcing SAFA to revert to their original plan at Lucas Moripe Stadium.

The PSL is being heavily criticized for its “ignorance” in this situation, as they were aware of SAFA’s venue booking. The situation has been described as an instance of bullying tactics by the PSL, against which SAFA stood firm.

SAFA was prepared to publicly condemn the PSL if their name had been mentioned in the PSL’s Friday statement, as SAFA possessed written documentation of prior communications. The PSL, however, claimed they only learned of the conflicting match through social media.

With the Nedbank Cup match cancelled, the rescheduled date remains unknown. Furthermore, the match could not be played on Sunday, as Sundowns is scheduled to host AmaZulu at the same venue on Tuesday in the Betway Premiership.  

In summary, Sportswire’s investigation indicates that the PSL is primarily responsible for this “reckless” situation.”