As the 2024/2025 Betway Premiership fast approaches its climax, embarrassingly, the official PSL website still reflects the WRONG standings.
This comes after the Premier Soccer League’s Board of Governors (BoG) decided to back the recommendation by the league’s executive committee to cancel Royal AM’s membership with immediate effect.
Representatives of all 31 professional teams – minus the affected Royal AM – gathered at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg to deliberate the merits of the case.
The Exco, led by chairman Irvin Khoza, had proposed that Thwihli Thwahla be expelled after failing to honour their domestic fixtures at the start of the year that left the league with no choice but to suspend them indefinitely.
However, weeks later, Royal AM still appear in the standings – as at Sunday, 20 April.
What does this mean for the Betway Premiership?
With the KwaZulu-Natal outfit having only played 11 matches in the Betway Premiership this season, it now means all points gained by those 11 teams (if any) against Royal AM have been rendered null and void.
Furthermore, there will be no automatic relegation this season.
As is always the case, the team that finishes 15th – and now effectively last – will still go to the playoffs to determine their survival – or relegation.
All teams will thus play 28 matches this season.
Naturally, the ruling comes as a blow to those teams which did play Royal AM this season – especially those who pick up wins against Shauwn ‘MaMkhize’ Mkhize’s side.
A look at the results from the season shows that Royal AM won one, drew five and lost five of their 11 matches.
Let’s start with the one team they did manage to beat, Sekhukhune United. They won’t be affected by Thursday’s ruling.
The five teams that drew against Royal AM will all lose one point.
They are: Cape Town City FC, SuperSport United, Richards Bay, Magesi FC and Kaizer Chiefs.
The five teams who beat Royal AM will be hardest hit by a reduction of three points from their current points total.
Those sides are: Mamelodi Sundowns, Polokwane City, Golden Arrows, AmaZulu and TS Galaxy.
The four teams that didn’t play Royal AM this season and are therefore unaffected by the ruling in terms of a log points deduction are Orlando Pirates, Stellenbosch FC, Chippa United and Marumo Gallants.
The big news, of course, is that Mamelodi Sundowns’ lead atop the standings has now been cut to nine points from Orlando Pirates – who have played two fewer matches.
Do better, PSL
However, a look at the PSL website shows that there still haven’t made the necessary changes to the standings.
Some teams are on schedule to finish the season on 29 matches, others on 28.
The two-way top-of-the-table title race between Mamelodi Sundowns and Orlando Pirates currently paints an incorrect pictue.
Masandawana are officially now nine points ahead having played two more matches than the Buccaneers.
However, the PSL log suggests the Tshwane giants are 12 points ahead with the Soweto giants having three matches in hand.
The MTN8 scenario is also a mess with Kaizer Chiefs claiming they are in eighth place in the log – when in actual fact they are ninth.
Come on PSL, do better!
Royal AM’s results in the 2024/25 Betway Premiership season
Royal AM 1-1 Cape Town City FC
SuperSport United 0-0 Royal AM
Royal AM 0-0 Richards Bay
Magesi FC 0-0 Royal AM
Mamelodi Sundowns 2-1 Royal AM
Royal AM 2-0 Sekhukhune United
Royal AM 0-1 Polokwane City
Royal AM 2-3 Golden Arrows
Kaizer Chiefs 2-2 Royal AM
AmaZulu 2-1 Royal AM
Royal AM 1-3 TS Galaxy
Any idea why the PSL wouldn’t update the official standings?
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1
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