By Chris Totobela
Makhanda football fans are over the moon following the historic promotion of local side, Maru FC, to the ABC Motsepe League this past weekend.
The promotion, the first of its kind for Makhanda, came after provincial play-offs at Rhodes University’s Great and Kings fields on Saturday and Sunday.
Teams were divided into three groups of three and Maru FC was pitted against Fast Eleven FC from the OR Tambo District and Musketeers FC from the Chris Hani District.
On Saturday, Maru came up against Fast Eleven in the first game of the mini-tournament and had to dig deep in the second half as the first period ended goalless. The home side pulled out all the stops in the second half and thrashed their opponents 4-1.
In their next game on Sunday, in front of a packed Great Field, Maru players showed their intentions from the first whistle, keeping Musketeers on the backfoot. And it was not long before they caught the visitors’ defence napping with a through ball that found Vuyani Skeyi wide on the left. Skeyi unselfishly crossed the ball in front of goal for Aviwe Payi to tap home the opening goal.
Maru took that one goal lead into the halftime break. In the second half, Musketeers tried to make a game of it but were always caught out by Maru’s pace upfront, which led to Skeyi catching the opponents’ goalkeeper by surprise with a well-taken goal in the near post. The home side held on until the final whistle.
Local fans burst into song immediately after the final whistle and invaded the pitch to celebrate with their heroes. It was for the first time in the long history of local football that a local team had made it to the ABC Motsepe League.
Maru’s coach Siya Dumiso had mixed emotions. “I’m excited and emotional at the same time as you can see. But I’m happy that we have finally made it. We have made history in Makhanda and this is not only for us but the entire Makhanda community and the district as a whole. This is going to open doors for the local boys as I have always said to you in all my interviews that Makhanda is blessed with great talent. ”
Dumiso went on to thank all the fans who supported the team. “I would like to thank all these people who have packed this field and set aside all our differences. Thanks to [Grocott’s Mail] as well for always keeping our fans updated.”
Team captain Lisa Makretsi could not hide his excitement. “I still can’t believe what we have achieved here today. It has been a very tough play-off tournament for us. Both games were difficult but we knew what we had to do and we wanted it more. Special thanks to the local fans who came here early in the morning to support us as both of our games were played very early. Thanks to you too for always giving us an opportunity to communicate with our people.”
Thembelani Mzalazala, a top coach and member of the Maru FC technical team, said that he was happy to be alive to witness the “big, historic day in local football”.
Recently crowned June 16 Women’s Soccer Tournament best player, Sosinda Nondlwana of champions African Connection WFC, congratulated Maru FC. “I would like to congratulate Maru FC on behalf of the Amakonokono family and we wish them all the best in their new journey. We were here on both days to support them and we will continue to support everyone trying to put Makhanda on the map.”
