Latest news with #FootballeroftheSeason
The South African
5 days ago
- Sport
- The South African
Kaizer Chiefs guaranteed ONE winner at PSL Awards
The 2024/25 PSL season was one – another one – to forget for Soweto giants Kaizer Chiefs. Amakhosi finished ninth in what turned out to be a 15-team Betway Premiership and missed out – again – on qualifying for the lucrative MTN8 this season. The one shining light, however, was their 2-1 Nedbank Cup win over bitter rivals Orlando Pirates at the Moses Mabhida Stadium back in May this year. The Glamour Boys were rewarded for that victory when the Premier Soccer League (PSL) announced the nominees for the 2024/25 PSL Awards later this month. The awards ceremony will take place on Tuesday, 29 July, at 19:00 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport PSL Channel and SABC Sport. In the Nedbank Cup Player of the Tournament category, all three nominees – Inacio Miguel, Pule Mmodi, and Gaston Sirino – hail from Kaizer Chiefs. That means Kaizer Chiefs are guaranteed to go home with at least one accolade. Interestingly, the Nedbank Cup Most Promising Player category is dominated by Orlando Pirates , with nominations for Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Relebohile Mofokeng and Mohau Nkota. Meanwhile, the prestigious Footballer of the Season award will be contested by Keletso Makgalwa (Sekhukhune United), Relebohile Mofokeng (Orlando Pirates), and Lucas Ribeiro Costa (Mamelodi Sundowns). All three players have also been nominated for the Betway Premiership Players' Player of the Season award, underlining their consistency and influence during the 2024/25 campaign. The nominees for the Betway Premiership Coach of the Season are Steve Barker (Stellenbosch FC), Miguel Cardoso (Mamelodi Sundowns), and Jose Riveiro (Orlando Pirates). In the Betway Premiership Young Player of the Season category, the shortlist includes Malibongwe Khoza (Mamelodi Sundowns), Relebohile Mofokeng and Mohau Nkota (both Orlando Pirates). This year's awards also see the introduction of three new categories in the Motsepe Foundation Championship. Nominees for Players' Player of the Season are Banele Hlophe (JDR Stars), Joslin Kamatuka (Durban City FC), and Muzomuhle Khanyi (Hungry Lions). Luke Baartman (Cape Town Spurs), Teboho Lekhatla (Casric Stars), and Siphamandla Mhlongo (Milford FC) are shortlisted for Young Player of the Season, while Emile Lako (Casric Stars), Sekhoane Moerane (Orbit College), and Dumsani Msibi (Durban City FC) have been nominated for Goalkeeper of the Season. The MTN8 Last Man Standing nominees include Fawaaz Basadien (Stellenbosch FC), Deon Hotto and Relebohile Mofokeng (both Orlando Pirates), while the Magesi FC duo of Elvis Chipezeze and Edmore Chirambadare, along with Mamelodi Sundowns' Iqraam Rayners, are nominated for the Carling Knockout Player of the Tournament. The nominees for the DStv Diski Challenge Player of the Season are Gomolemo Kekana of Mamelodi Sundowns, Ntandoyenkosi Nkosi of Kaizer Chiefs, and Tylon Smith of Stellenbosch FC. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The South African
5 days ago
- Sport
- The South African
PSL Awards: Who gets YOUR vote as Footballer of the Season?
The Premier Soccer League (PSL) has announced the nominees for the 2024/25 PSL Awards. The awards ceremony will take place on Tuesday, 29 July, at 19:00, live on SuperSport PSL Channel and SABC Sport. The prestigious Footballer of the Season award will be contested by Keletso Makgalwa (Sekhukhune United), Relebohile Mofokeng (Orlando Pirates), and Lucas Ribeiro Costa (Mamelodi Sundowns). All three players have also been nominated for the Betway Premiership Players' Player of the Season award, underlining their consistency and influence during the 2024/25 campaign. The nominees for the Betway Premiership Coach of the Season are Steve Barker (Stellenbosch FC), Miguel Cardoso (Mamelodi Sundowns), and Jose Riveiro (Orlando Pirates). In the Betway Premiership Young Player of the Season category, the shortlist includes Malibongwe Khoza (Mamelodi Sundowns), Relebohile Mofokeng and Mohau Nkota (both Orlando Pirates). This year's awards also see the introduction of three new categories in the Motsepe Foundation Championship. Nominees for Players' Player of the Season are Banele Hlophe (JDR Stars), Joslin Kamatuka (Durban City FC), and Muzomuhle Khanyi (Hungry Lions). Luke Baartman (Cape Town Spurs), Teboho Lekhatla (Casric Stars), and Siphamandla Mhlongo (Milford FC) are shortlisted for Young Player of the Season, while Emile Lako (Casric Stars), Sekhoane Moerane (Orbit College), and Dumsani Msibi (Durban City FC) have been nominated for Goalkeeper of the Season. The MTN8 Last Man Standing nominees include Fawaaz Basadien (Stellenbosch FC), Deon Hotto and Relebohile Mofokeng (both Orlando Pirates), while the Magesi FC duo of Elvis Chipezeze and Edmore Chirambadare, along with Mamelodi Sundowns' Iqraam Rayners, are nominated for the Carling Knockout Player of the Tournament. In the Nedbank Cup Player of the Tournament category, all three nominees – Inacio Miguel, Pule Mmodi, and Gaston Sirino – come from Kaizer Chiefs. Meanwhile, the Nedbank Cup Most Promising Player category is dominated by Orlando Pirates, with nominations for Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Relebohile Mofokeng, and Mohau Nkota. The nominees for the DStv Diski Challenge Player of the Season are Gomolemo Kekana of Mamelodi Sundowns, Ntandoyenkosi Nkosi of Kaizer Chiefs, and Tylon Smith of Stellenbosch FC. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
IOL News
18-07-2025
- Sport
- IOL News
Orlando Pirates draw pre-season clash against Las Palmas in Spain
Orlando Pirates ended their pre-season friendly against Las Palmas in a goalless draw in Marbella, showcasing strategic substitutions and setting the stage for their upcoming match against Granada. Seen here: Bandile Shandu. Picture: Alche Greef/BackpagePix Perhaps the best of all the chances fell to Kabelo Dlaimini as he struck the crossbar from a free-kick just after the quarter-hour mark. Though neither side could find a goal in the encounter, there were chances for both teams to find a winner throughout the clash. Orlando Pirates played out to a goalless draw against Spanish outfit Las Palmas in their pre-season friendly match in Marbella on Thursday. restore all settings to the default values Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Seek to live, currently behind live Pirates' Strategic Substitutions and Upcoming Match Against Granada In the second half, Pirates threw on goalkeeper Sipho Chaine, Deano Van Rooyen, Patrick Maswanganyi and Sinoxolo Kwayiba in an attempt to change things up. In hot conditions, the result was fair even though Pirates would go on to hit the woodwork for a second time. Over the weekend, Pirates drew 1-1 with Pafos FC. Pirates will next be in action on Saturday against Granada, with the kick-off at 7pm which will be televised on SuperSport and streamed live on its YouTube channel. Earlier this week, The Premier Soccer League (PSL) on Tuesday confirmed the nominees for the 2024/2025 PSL Awards. The awards will take place on July 29, at 7pm, on the SuperSport PSL channel and on SABC Sport. In the headline event, the Footballer of the Season award will be contested by Sekhukhune United's Keletso Makgalwa, Relebohile Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns' Lucas Ribeiro Costa. The Betway Premiership Players Player of the Season will also come from one of the same three players. @Michael_Sherman IOL Sport
The Citizen
17-07-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Maluleke backs Mofokeng for top PSL award amid fierce debate
"I still say Mofokeng (to win Footballer of the Season) but I think Player's Player of the Season will go to Lucas Ribeiro," Maluleke said. Orlando Pirates sensation Relebohile Mofokeng is in contention for the prestigious 2024–25 PSL Footballer of the Season award. © Samuel Shivambu/BackpagePix As the debate intensifies over who deserves to be named the 2024/25 PSL Footballer of the Season, former Mamelodi Sundowns striker Ishmael Maluleke supports Orlando Pirates sensation Relebohile Mofokeng. On Tuesday afternoon, the PSL confirmed the nominees for the prestigious award, with Mofokeng earning recognition after a stellar campaign that saw him help the Buccaneers lift the MTN8 title and finish second in the Betway Premiership. ALSO READ: Pirates respond to report linking Mofokeng with move to PSV Sundowns talisman Lucas Ribeiro and Sekhukhune United's revitalized forward Keletso Makgalwa join him on the shortlist. Maluleke, the 2001/02 PSL Golden Boot winner with 18 goals, believes Mofokeng deserves the crown. 'I still say Mofokeng (to win Footballer of the Season) but I think Player's Player of the Season will go to Lucas Ribeiro,' Maluleke told Thabiso Mosia on Radio 2000. 'For Keletso, as much as he did well but when you look at where his team was (could count against him), all those things play an important role. 'You must influence the team as well and not only what you do as an individual. He has done well for his club Sekhukhune United in terms of assists and scoring goals which made him influential for his team. 'When you look at Mofokeng, he played a crucial role. He was so dynamic, influential and creative. Lots of goals that came from him and assists. No one is surprised by how much Ribeiro did for Mamelodi Sundowns.' ALSO READ: OPINION: Why was Rayners snubbed for top PSL Awards? SABC Sport and SuperSport will broadcast the PSL Awards ceremony live on 29 July at 7pm, where they will crown South Africa's new football king.
TimesLIVE
16-07-2025
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Rayners should have been nominated for Footballer of the Season
End of season awards are by their nature highly divisive and the announcement of the nominees for last season's best performers to compete for the top prizes in the PSL Awards was not going to avoid the storm. After the long wait, the Premier Soccer League (PSL) released their list of nominees on Tuesday and, as per script, the list has been met with strong and contrasting opinions from all quarters. The list is long but sharp focus is on the main categories of the Footballer and Betway Premiership Players' Player of the Season awards, where Mamelodi Sundowns striker Iqraam Rayners is conspicuous by his absence. There are those who agree with the coaches and players who voted for not including Rayners in those categories but there are those, like me, who strongly argue he should have been shortlisted. Footballer of the Season is judged by Betway Premiership coaches and the Players' Player of the Season, as the title suggests, by fellow professionals. It is surprising many did not seen Rayners as worthy of a nomination for the top awards, to be announced on July 29. #𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬𝟐𝟓: Here are the three players nominated for the PSL Footballer of the Season award. — Official PSL (@OfficialPSL) July 15, 2025 Coaches and players have intimate knowledge of the league they take part in but there is nothing stopping supporters from disagreeing with the surprising choices they have made. Some will ask what the point is of this argument because Rayners has been pipped by teammate Lucas Ribeiro, Relebohile Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates and Sekhukhune United attacker Keletso Makgalwa for both categories. Nothing is going to change the situation but this is a good point of discussion and it would be interesting to find out from those who did not vote for him, what motivated their decisions. From where I am sitting, it does not look like coaches and fellow players who voted for Ribeiro, Mofokeng and Makgalwa looked closely at Rayners' impressive goal contribution numbers. 📆 𝐒𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 The #𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬𝟐𝟓 ceremony will take place on Tuesday, 29 July, live on the SuperSport PSL channel and SABC Sport. — Official PSL (@OfficialPSL) July 15, 2025 Rayners contributed 14 goals and nine assists in 26 matches for the Brazilians on their way to their eighth successive Premiership title, which is significantly better than Mofokeng (five goals and eight assists in 26 games) and Makgalwa (four goals and 11 assists in 26 matches). Those who don't want to go with numbers, there is a strong footballing argument for Rayners that he was largely the front-line Sundowns attacker ahead of Peter Shalulile, Arthur Sales, Ribeiro (who usually played deeper) and Tashreeq Matthews. As part of coach Miguel Cardoso's attacking plan, he was sometimes used as a forward decoy and this allowed Ribeiro, Sales and Matthews to threaten opposition defenders. The Footballer of the Season award, too, is decided across all the PSL's competitions, while the Player's Player award is for the Premiership. So Rayners not making the cut in the former is even more strange. Rayners was instrumental in helping Downs reach the Carling Knockout final, where they lost 2-1 to Magesi FC in Bloemfontein, with a solid contribution of four goals in as many matches. Rayners — who also had Champions League and Bafana Bafana commitments, which is only relevant for this discussion in considering how it added to his workload — contributed 18 goals and nine assists after 33 matches in all PSL competitions. That is notably is more than both Mofokeng and Makgalwa, which seems the major factor in Rayner's ommission being so widely discussed. In my view, Ribeiro must be named the Footballer of the Season. He established himself as a significant cog in the Sundowns attack and his contribution of 17 goals and 12 assists from 34 matches in all competitions, often from a deeper role, sets him apart as the best player in the country last campaign. There is a strong case for exciting Mofokeng because he scored crucial goals for Pirates, sometimes in the high-profile matches, though he did lack consistency in front of goal. For someone who plays in an advancing attacking role as a winger, No 10 or striker, Mofokeng's return of only seven goals and 12 assists in 36 league and cup games is hardly world class. To be frank, Makgalwa's statistical return in cup competitions was poor and he did not set the league alight with four goals and 11 assists in 26 appearances for a team that did not even finish in the top three. His case could have been enhanced if he helped Sekhukhune to a top three finish but they were pipped to the Confederation Cup by Stellenbosch FC and also did not make it to a cup final. If you look closely at Rayners' goal contributions last season, they are better than Makgalwa and Mofokeng and it is disappointing that for some strange reason, some of the coaches and players were not impressed by his contribution. In my view, he was the second-best player in the league after Ribeiro because of the influence he had for coach Cardoso and the dominant Sundowns who won the league convincingly. He played a role in many of Ribeiro's goals, and vice versa. I have the respect for coaches and players, but I don't agree with them because Rayners was consistent and scored important goals for Sundowns and he deserved at least a nomination for his troubles.
