It’s still a long way to the finish line, but for now Makana Rhini United (MARU) feel it's mission accomplished by taking the South African Football Association (SAFA) South African Breweries (SAB) league A-stream for the Cacadu region.
It’s still a long way to the finish line, but for now Makana Rhini United (MARU) feel it's mission accomplished by taking the South African Football Association (SAFA) South African Breweries (SAB) league A-stream for the Cacadu region.
MARU were tipped as favourites from the word go to clinch the division and qualify as the first Grahamstown side for the ABC Motsepe playoffs.
They achieved that deed with two games in hand, opening the gap between them and the chasers early on in the season.
The side finished this year’s campaign with a record 10 wins, two draws and four losses in their 16 league matches.
The Grahamstown side has enjoyed a moderately fairy-tale run since their establishment in 2010.
They sailed through their first seasons in both the first and premier division in the LFA to qualify for the SAB league.
The 2014/15 season was their third stint in the division and the club safeguarded their top spot from the first game to the last.
Team manager Siya Miza says though it might seem like a smooth sailing considering the gap between them and their nearest challengers, there were many ups and downs that threatened their quest for glory this season.
“Injuries, suspensions and refereeing (bad refereeing) when we were playing away are just some of the things we encountered along the way.
“We are happy to have achieved our dream of winning our stream and qualify for playoffs in only our third season in the SAB,” said Miza.
ABC Motsepe promotion Playoffs: The long process of the ABC Motsepe league promotion playoffs is now upon MARU as they seek to make history by being the first Grahamstown team to play in SAFA second division.
The team will start by facing off with Cacadu stream B, C and D winners to determine who goes to the provincial playoffs.
Although playoff dates have not been finalised, Miza say they have been keeping busy with practice matches against ABC Motsepe league sides.
“We want to have strong opposition when training and we want to familiarise ourselves with teams in higher divisions than us,” said Miza.
The playoffs will be the toughest test faced by the Grahamstown side, as their away record is less than impressive.
Miza attributed that to the poor officiating that has long been suffered by the lower-division sides playing away matches.
The top two teams after the long playoffs process will be promoted to the second division, where they will be competing in a 16-team league with some of the best sides in the province.
