Free State Stars chairman, Michael Mokoena, has died. His family says he died at a Johannesburg hospital this morning after losing the battle to cancer.
Bro Mike, as he was affectionately known, was a respected businessman and football administrator. His club was originally formed in 1977, but sold the status to the Premier Soccer League (PSL) in 2002 when the league reduced clubs from 18 to 16.
Mokoena later bought the status of first division club Maholosiane FC in 2003.
Among other honours, Mokoena’s club became Second Division champions in in 1985, and won the 1994 Coca Cola Cup against Hellenic, in the game in which former striker, Bunene Ngaduane was unstoppable.
His insatiable lust for football did not end there. Under Mokoena’s stewardship, the club regained their Premiership status in 2005 after winning the then-Mvela Golden League. However, it was relegated in the 2005/6 season. Even though the Ea Lla Koto club did well in the 2017/18 season by claiming the Nedbank Cup, they got relegated the following season.
