OPINION: Sale of Swallows making a mockery of the league

Yo-yo club Marumo Gallants have bounced back to the DStv Premiership after purchasing the status of the embattled Moroka Swallows. I guess the more things change, the more they stay the same. How many times are Gallants going to buy their way to the top?

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This is the same team that bought Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila in 2021 and got relegated to the Motsepe Foundation Championship two seasons later. Wait, there is more, English coach Dylan Kerr is back for his second spell in charge of the team he left after they dropped a division down.

After just one season in the National First Division of South African football where they finished five points above the relegation zone, guess what? Gallants are back in topflight football. This would be funny if it wasn’t true but this constant buying and selling of statuses is making a mockery of the PSL brand.

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Anyone with deep pockets can literally ascend to the upper echelon of South African football and it’s sad to see. To be fair, the rules do allow for such transactions but this is not a good look for the PSL. In my opinion, this goes against the basic principle of competitiveness and undermines the spirit of fair play.

Judging by the preliminary communications by the club, I foresee another disaster of a season for Gallants who clearly haven’t got all their ducks in a row. They have released numerous statements that reveal their intentions to communicate their future plans.

The only thing we know this far is their plan to relocate the team from Limpopo to Bloemfontein. At this point, Gallants management should have communicated their plans already instead of delaying their address to the public.

Take a leaf out of Leicester City who were relegated from the English Premier League but fought their way back from the championship. I think a spot in the top division should be earned and not bought. Gallants should be the first to know that there are no shortcuts to the top. They clearly haven’t learned their lessons from their short stay in the league

It is evident that the management of the Limpopo side have money to throw at their problems but it would be better to invest in structures at the club that will allow them to build a stronger and more competitive brand.

Are they going to buy another status should they get relegated again when the season ends? Is this model of running the club even sustainable? I think it causes more harm than good because fans are the biggest casualties in all of this. Bloemfontein Celtic supporters are still reeling from their beloved Siwelele being sold to Royal AM.

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The history of the club was just wiped out by a single transaction and the PSL is poorer without Celtic. Everyone associated with Gallants will be hoping for a longer stay in the top league this time but I can almost guarantee you that they will be fighting relegation.