Sport

PSL title race down to the wire

Brad Morgan

13 May 2008

The Premier Soccer League is heading towards a thrilling climax. Only one point separates the top two clubs, SuperSport United and Ajax Cape Town. Depending upon results, the winners could be decided on Thursday, but it might all come down to the final round of matches on Sunday.

Should the title race go down to the final day of the season, the PSL has put into place a plan to make sure the victors receive the trophy on the day. A helicopter will be stationed in Harrismith – roughly halfway between Durban and Bloemfontein – ready to fly PSL CEO Kjetil Siem and the trophy to the venue of the title winners, along with medals, and a cheque for R10-million.

While SuperSport lead Ajax by 51 points to 50, they trail the Urban Warriors by four goals on goal difference, so their margin of error over the next two matches is very small. Matsatsantsa have won one more match than Ajax, who have, in turn, drawn two more matches and lost one less than the Pretoria-based club.

Common opponent

Both teams have tough run-ins, although SuperSport United's final two games, on paper, appear to be slightly more favourable. Gavin Hunt's men, however, share a common final opponent with Ajax in Lamontville Golden Arrows.

The Durban side is a more than useful outfit that has performed steadily in the PSL for a number of years now. They're currently in seventh place in the standings, 10 points adrift of second placed Ajax. They finish their season by hosting the Urban Warriors at the King Zwelethini Stadium on Sunday, but before that they tackle SuperSport United at the Atteridgeville Stadium on Wednesday evening.

A home victory for SuperSport United would heap the pressure on Ajax who play the following night in a match that would have had extra significance for the Cape Town side even before the season started, never mind the extra significance it has now taken on.

Local derby

They're set to take on Santos in a local derby and anything can happen in such matches. As an example, consider the English Premier League this season where Manchester United won the title, while their local rivals Manchester City finished the season with an 8-1 hammering at the hands of Middlesbrough to end ninth, 32 points behind the Red Devils. The derby honours, however, went the way of City, with 1-0 and 2-1 wins. Anything is possible.

Santos, known as "The People's Team", are a dangerous side and occupy third place in the standings, only five points behind Ajax. Should they beat Craig Rosslee's charges and SuperSport United win against Golden Arrows, the gap between the top two would be four points and the title would belong to SuperSport. If that doesn't happen, it will all come down to the final round of matches on Sunday.

SuperSport United face Bloemfontein Celtic, currently 12th in the 16-team PSL, but the match takes place at the Seisa Ramabodu Stadium in Bloemfontein where Celtic, with fantastic support from their fans, are a far tougher prospect than away from home.

Ajax, meanwhile, travel to Durban to face Golden Arrows. The home side's form has been difficult to gauge since February, something which is reflected in their record of 10 wins, 10 draws and eight losses.

Plans for the trophy

For PSL CEO Siem, in his first season in charge, the neck-and-neck race is the type of conclusion to a season that he dreams about. In an interview on SAFM, Siem said the later a title race is decided the better it is.

The Norwegian understands drama and the visual feast it provides, coming from a background that includes working as a sports reporter for Norway's largest broadcaster, TV2. He was also a director of Oslo club Valeranga when they broke Rosenborg's 13-year stranglehold on the Tippeliga title in 2005 by scoring a goal 10 seconds from the end of their final match to take the title by that single goal on goal difference.

He is looking forward to the possible logistical challenge that the close title race has produced, but it wouldn't be the first time that such a challenge has been faced in the PSL. In 2005, the title was decided on the last day of the season and on that occasion a helicopter was successfully used to deliver the trophy to the winning team.

PSL CEO Trevor Phillips was stationed midway between Johannesburg and Bloemfontein awaiting the outcome of the matches between the leaders Kaizer Chiefs, who were in action in Bloemfontein against Celtic, and second placed Orlando Pirates, who took on Bush Bucks in Johannesburg. Ultimately, Phillips ended up flying to the Free State capital to present the trophy to the Amakhosi, who finished two points clear of the Buccaneers.

Sponsorship boom

A similar experience for Siem would make for a wonderful televised spectacle, which would put an exclamation mark on a season that has produced a sponsorship boom for the PSL and South African football in general. It has included R400-million over five years for the Nedbank Cup, R500-million from Absa and South African Breweries towards Bafana Bafana and the First Division, and a massive R1.6-billion deal for television rights to the PSL with SuperSport, the sponsors of the title-chasing Pretoria club.

The conclusion of the season will also mark quite some departure from the norm of the three big guns – Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates, and Mamelodi Sundowns – fighting it out for the PSL title. Chiefs are currently in sixth place, Pirates in 11th, and Sundowns in 4th.

A nail-biting finish on Sunday, along with the failure of the big clubs to challenge for the title, would also make for an intriguing season in 2008/09 with a number of plot lines, including whether or not the new season would be as closely-contested as 2007/08, whether or not there will be a resurgence from Chiefs, Pirates, and Sundowns, and whether or not clubs such as SuperSport United, Ajax Cape Town, and Santos will continue to rise.