PSL to meet for fifth time over Chiefs Covid-19 saga

The Premier Soccer League’s (PSL) executive committee will meet for the fifth time on Tuesday to discuss the Kaizer Chiefs Covid-19 controversy despite chair Irvin Khoza on Monday claiming it should be a simple matter because of the many rules and regulations in place.

Khoza said the executive committee would meet at 11am to follow up on previous meetings and that supporters wanted clarity after Chiefs failed to turn up for last week’s PSL matches against Cape Town City and Lamontville Golden Arrows, claiming more than 30 Covid-19 infections among their “employees’’ had left them unable to fulfil the fixtures.

“It is not an easy matter. It is one dealt with by the football department and escalated to the executive committee. It requires a lot of attention to detail to make sure the adjudication on this matter is thorough. We are a rules-based organisation,” said Khoza.

“Usually everything is easy. You refer to the handbook for answers. But there are situations that occur in normal life that require us to apply our mind.

“We have been referring the matter back to the office to deal with the issues we have raised, and we have been told we will get the final bit of information we require, if it is possible [on Monday] and the meeting is convened for [Tuesday].

“Whether it will be the final date we adjudicate, I don’t know. We will have to see the facts in front of us. It is urgent, it is important, it is creating uncertainty in our market, but everything we do is in the interest of all the teams of the PSL.”

The PSL issued an edict in December 2020 that no matches could be postponed because of Covid-19 and it was on the basis of this circular that Cape Umoya United and Polokwane United were docked points in last season’s GladAfrica Championship.

“But we also take into account the issue of sporting integrity and reputational management, the issues of stakeholders. There are so many things we have to evaluate in this matter,” said Khoza. “The most important thing is our clubs come first.”

Chiefs did return to action on Sunday and despite missing coach Stuart Baxter and many regulars, they beat Sekhukhune United 2-0 to go second in the standings.