PSL Denies Durban City’s Friday Night Matches Request
Durban City coach Gavin Hunt has confirmed that the PSL has denied the club’s request to play more home matches on Friday nights.
Sportswire learned that the club sent a request to the PSL before the Betway Premiership fixtures were released.
The club had hoped to create a similar home advantage to the one they enjoyed when they finished a record fourth in the 2017/18 season, under the name Maritzburg United, where they played many of their home games on Friday nights and were able to attract a larger crowd.
The club’s best campaign in that season also saw them reach their first Nedbank Cup final, but they lost to the now-defunct Free State Stars.
This season, Durban City, who were promoted from the Motsepe Foundation Championship last term, were granted only three matches on a Friday night. One of the games they requested to move was a 1-1 draw against Golden Arrows at Chatsworth Stadium, which was played on Tuesday night.
“Obviously, we wanted to play this game on a Friday night, and the league denied us for whatever reason,” Hunt said after the game on Tuesday.
“They didn’t want to move the game to a Friday night. I think we would get 3,000 to 4,000 more fans, and that would be great.”
When asked if the league’s decision was an attempt to deny City a competitive advantage, Hunt replied, “I don’t know, I can’t make those assumptions. I know we did ask, and I know the chairman [Farook Kadodia] did ask to play on a Friday night, and they only wanted us to play on Tuesday.”
Hunt also speculated that getting both clubs to agree to a change would have been difficult.
Sportswire has learned that Arrows would not have agreed to the change due to the “toxic relationship” between the two clubs.
City’s management still feels hurt by the events of the 2022/23 season, where they believe Arrows is allegedly and intentionally played for a draw in their final game against Chippa United, which resulted in Maritzburg’s relegation.
It was one of the most embarrassing moments in the PSL, and sources speculated that it was a pre-planned event for both clubs to play to a draw to relegate Maritzburg.
