Matshelane Mamabolo
EVENTUALLY a decision has been made! It took them long enough, alright. But then again they probably did not want to jump the gun, did they?
The Premier Soccer League's (PSL) decision on Monday to ‘kick’ Royal AM out of the Nedbank Cup came about after the order by the curator of the South African Revenue Services (SARS) that the club be sold so as for the taxman to recoup what Shauwn Mkhize owes them.
Royal AM officially removed from #NedbankCup pic.twitter.com/cg0h6n6WAv
— Thomas Mlambo (@thomasmlambo) February 25, 2025
While, from the outside, one always felt the league should expel the club that has done their reputation a lot of harm, the reality of it is that the PSL had to take their time in making such a decision. For one, the country’s elite leauge is a 16-team entity. And when they go out to sponsors in search of support, this is what they sell.
Banking giants Nedbank for example, have a contract with the league that promises participation of all 16 clubs from the ‘first round proper’ of the competition. And the PSL’s decision to hold their horses on making a call on Royal AM’s participation in the country’s premier knockout tournament had to do with that.
They needed to do their utmost to avoid breaching the contract, hence the decision to rather suspend their matches instead of expelling Mkhize’s club.
Given that Royal AM’s challenge was not purely football-related but rather involved a third party over which they have no jurisdiction, the PSL had to allow the SARS' process to get concluded before they could make their own decision.
To many, that might have appeared cowardice. But can you imagine if they’d expelled Royal AM only for the club to sort out its troubles with SARS and find a way to pay the players.
It is for that reason that the league even went to the extent of consultation with both the curator and the club to reach this decision which will see Milford FC eventually kick-starting their Nedbank Cup in the Round of 16 instead of the last 32 with the clash against Sekhukhune United this weekend.
Many will probably feel that the league should also make a decision with regards to Royal AM’s standing in the Betway Premiership here and now.
Because of their troubles, Royal AM have not been playing their league matches and that has created the current situation where the number of matches played are so different among the clubs.
It makes for somewhat unfair competition as Orlando Pirates coach Jose Riveiro intimated the other day. But the PSL’s hands were clearly tied, for they needed to first see how the Royal AM case with SARS played out.
Yet whichever way you look at it, this has been a ‘Royal’ mess of epic proportions.
And now with SARS having declared that Royal AM should be sold, it is incumbent on the PSL to do proper due diligence on whoever comes forward and express interest in purchasing the status.
They need to make sure that the new owners are people who are going to run the club properly and not get into situations of players not getting paid and thus forcing scenarios of matches being suspended as has been the case with Royal AM.
Damn! We’ve had so many of such – remember Moroka Swallows – it is embarrassing and a mockery to the claim that ours is one of the top 10 leagues in the world.