ISITOBHA seMarumo Gallants, uTrevor Mathiane, sifuna balwele umqeqeshi uDan Malesela obacoshe bechithwa ngamanye amaqembu ngenxa yokuhanjelwa yiminyaka.
IGallants, ebuyele kwiBetway Premiership ngokuthenga isitifiketi seMoroka Swallows, isawine kanye emidlalweni eyisihlanu yeligi esayidlalile kule sizini ka-2024/2025. Ukuqala kabi kweGallants, sekuqubule izinkulumo zokuthi kungenzeka akhonjwe indlela uMalesela. Nokho ubajabulisile abalandeli ngokufaka leli qembu kuma-quarterfinals eCarling Knockout.
UMalesela ubumbe iqembu lakhe ngenqwaba yabadlali abaneminyaka yobudala engaphezu kuka-30. Iningi labo ulicoshe lingasawotholi amaqembu kwiPremiership ngoba kuthiwa selihanjelwe yiminyaka. Kulaba badlali kukhona uJoseph Molangoane (36) osebuya kwi-ABC Motsepe League, Edgar Manaka (35), Washington Arubi (39) ohlukane neSuperSport United ekupheleni kwesizini edlule noDaniel Akpeyi (38) obalwa nabadlali abebekwiSwallows.
UMathiane (35), ochithwe yiBaroka kwiMotsepe Foundation Championship, uthe kufanele bamvikele uMalesela.
“Ngicabanga ukuthi kumele sibonge kakhulu kumqeqeshi ngethuba asinikeze lona. Amaqembu amaningi aseMzansi awabafuni abadlali abaneminyaka engaphezu kuka-30. Kumele simulwele ukuze engaxoshwa. Abanye abadlali sebebuya kwiNFD. Akulula ukudlala laphaya. Ngaphezu kwalokho, abalandeli baseBloemfontein bayaseseka, ngakho akufanele sibaphoxe. Bayaseseka noma singenzi kahle,” kusho uMathiane.
IGallants izobhekana neStellenbosch emdlalweni wePremiership eCape Town Stadium ngoLwesine ngo-7.30 ebusuku. Ngemuva kwalokho, la maqembu azophinda atholane phezulu koweCarling eBloemfontein ngeSonto ntambama.
Akubuzwa ukuthi iMarumo, esendaweni ka-14 kwi-log, izolwela ukuthola iwini yesibili yesizini kwiligi ukuze izosuka kusakhanya ngasemsileni. Emdlalweni wokuqala wesizini, iGallants yakhala ngaphansi kwiKaizer Chiefs ngo 2-1. Kweminye imidlalo yehlulwe yiLamontville Golden Arrows ngo 2-0 neMamelodi Sundowns ngo 4-1. IGallants iqoqe amaphuzu amathathu kuMaZulu iwehlula ngo 1-0. Ngempelasonto edlule, iphume nephuzu kwiTS Galaxy ekuhambeni.
“Asiyiqalanga kahle isizini. Nakuba besiwakha amathuba kodwa siyahluleka ukushaya amagoli. Kodwa kuzofanele sivuke sizithathe ukuze sizolungisa izinto. Kumele siqale ukuwina ukuze sizoshintsha isimo eqenjini,” kusho uMathiane.