Rayners Disappointed By PSL Awards Snub

Mamelodi Sundowns attacker Iqraam Rayners has expressed his disappointment at being omitted from the 2024/25 Premier Soccer League (PSL) awards nominations, despite his outstanding performance throughout the season.

In a surprising turn, Rayners’ impressive debut season for Sundowns, which saw him score 24 goals and provide nine assists in 47 matches across all competitions, earned him zero nominations.

The Bafana Bafana striker was a significant contributor to the Brazilians clinching their eighth league title, netting 14 goals in 26 league matches, with all nine of his assists also coming in the league.

The 29-year-old believes his statistics speak for themselves and were certainly strong enough to earn him multiple nominations.

“Yeah, for me obviously, I’m a bit disappointed because what I did last season, I had a good season with a good team, good players that were helping me,” Rayners said, who also scored two goals in the FIFA Club World Cup.

“And obviously, the coaches also believe in me, so for me, I was disappointed when I saw the players they nominated, and don’t you think also my stats of last season, I think they were good enough to be in a lot of awards nominations.”

Rayners added that he doesn’t fully understand the awards selection criteria. However, he believes his teammate, Lucas Ribeiro Costa, is the deserving recipient of the PSL Footballer of the Season award.

“No, for me, I don’t understand it, but I think the best player for me in the league was Lucas, obviously,” Rayners stated.

The PSL awards ceremony is scheduled to take place on Tuesday night at 19:00.