About three years ago, towards the end of the season, more than six Premier Soccer League (PSL) teams were in deep financial trouble to an extent that the league was forced to hand advanced payments to keep them going.
The demands of that season had driven the so-called smaller teams to the edge and mainly because some PSL clubs don’t understand their models, but want to compete with the big guns at all costs.
This is a point that Highlands Park head coach Owen Da Gama is trying to drive home ahead of the launch of the 2019/2020 PSL season which kicks-off this weekend.
Da Gama says it’s important for Highlands Park not to get carried away by their top-eight finish from last season and continue to box clever in the new season.
At that stage three years ago, most of the PSL clubs were operating without a sponsor, heavily reliant on the league’s grant which stood at around R2,2 million at the end of last season.
Da Gama says player recruitment at the club level also has to talk to the model of the club, something which some PSL teams fail to do.
Last season Highlands Park finished seventh on the log in their first season back in the elite division from the National First Division (NFD.
This season they’ve strengthened their team differently from last season.
Da Gama says it’s important for teams and its supporters to be realistic about their expectations whilst they also remain competitive at the same time. – Report by Report by Velile Mnyandu
