What a roller coaster ride it has been for TS Sporting! Theirs is a truly remarkable story of heroism, a never-say-die attitude, learning from their mistakes and grabbing a second chance.
The Mpumalanga-based team were fortunate to avoid relegation to the amateur ranks last year.
TS Sporting escaped the drop to the ABC Motsepe League in dramatic fashion on the last day of the previous season. They had ended the GladAfrica Championship season in 15th place, but survived for another season after a boardroom battle.
However, in the space of six months, Sporting went from narrowly escaping relegation to being a top title contender in the GladAfrica Championship, where they are now second in the rankings behind Richards Bay.
Mbombela United were docked 34 points for fielding a player who belonged to another club. That other club, ironically, is Sporting TS. Sabelo Ndzinisa was a regular player for Mbombela, despite having signed with Sporting.
The PSL handed down a harsh punishment to Mbombela, who plunged down to amateur level, but Sporting were at risk of relegation. Fortunately, the team were ultimately saved from relegation by one of their own players, albeit in unusual circumstances.
Had Mbombela not been docked points, they would have finished equal on 32 points with Sporting. However, the former would have survived due to a superior goals difference.
Sporting are known for their world-class training facility in Mbombela and their captivating social media presence, but the results were not being seen on the field of play, so how were they able to turn things around so quickly?
Before, I would keep players in the squad out of sympathy. I would continue with players because I knew their background and struggles, even though they weren’t performing.
Slungu Thobela
“It’s true that we were lucky to avoid relegation last season and it was a major wake-up call for us. Although we always had faith that we wouldn’t go down, we can’t run away from the fact that it almost happened,” club owner Slungu Thobela told Mpumalanga Commuter.
“During the off-season, we made some changes to the squad after learning from our mistakes. We kept 20% of the players and let go of the others. We identified quality players who could add value to the team. So far, that strategy has worked.”
Thobela said he had also had to do some self-introspection regarding his recruitment methods.
“Before, I would keep players in the squad out of sympathy. I would continue with players because I knew their background and struggles, even though they weren’t performing. This had to stop and I learnt that you don’t give players contracts due to emotions,” he said.
The attorney-cum-businessperson said the team’s aim was to achieve the impossible by qualifying for the DStv Premiership not long after almost going down.
“Of course, we can’t get carried away by ambitions, but our objective has always been to gain promotion. Everyone at the club is hungry to achieve something after what happened last season. We’ll do our best in the remaining games and see what happens,” he said.
I took it as a challenge when I signed with the team. We have a number of good players and there’s healthy competition in the squad.
Matome Mabeba
Their coach, Kabelo Sibiya, has done a stellar job of taking the team from relegation candidates to title contenders in less than a year. Sibiya replaced MacDonald Makhubedu in the middle of the previous season.
One of the players who joined the team last year is former Baroka wing-back Matome Mabeba. The 30-year-old is an example of how the team changed its recruitment policy.
“I took it as a challenge when I signed with the team. We have a number of good players and there’s healthy competition in the squad. We’re all fighting hard to ensure that the team plays at a high level,” said Mabeba.
Having had premiership experience with Baroka, he believes the club has what it takes to play in the top flight.
“There’s no reason the team can’t perform because it’s run professionally and is good enough to be in the premier league. I think it’s only a matter of time before it happens. But we’re taking it one game at a time and we’re remaining focused on what needs to be done,” he said.
