Stellies to play next two ‘home’ games in Durban

Stellenbosch FC have announced that their next two home games will be played at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, because of unsuitable playing surfaces at both Danie Craven Stadium and Athlone Stadium in the Western Cape.

The Cape Town Stadium is also unavailable because of scheduling issues.

The Western Cape has experienced a huge amount of rainfall this winter, and TS Galaxy head coach Sead Ramovic complained bitterly about the pitch at Danie Craven Stadium after his side were beaten 3-1 by Stellies in the MTN8 quarterfinals.

Stellenbosch were originally set to play Swaziland’s Nsingizini Hotspurs in the second leg of their Caf Confederation Cup first qualifying round match at Athlone Stadium. That game will now be played in Durban, along with the second leg of their MTN8 semifinal against Mamelodi Sundowns.

“Stellenbosch Football Club can confirm the Club will regrettably play its upcoming home fixtures against Nsingizini Hotspurs (24 August) and Mamelodi Sundowns (1 September) away from our traditional home at Danie Craven Stadium, and indeed outside the Western Cape,” said Stellenbosch in a statement on Thursday.

“These fixtures will instead both be played at Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban due to the unavailability of the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch, and the surrounding Athlone Stadium and DHL Cape Town Stadium, on the dates in question

“The Club is unable to utilize Danie Craven or Athlone Stadium due to the ongoing rehabilitation of the playing surfaces at both venues. This is due to damage caused to the pitch by a combination of the prevailing wet weather conditions and a strenuous rugby season.

“The DHL Cape Town Stadium is similarly unavailable due to scheduling conflicts, including the international test match between the South African and New Zealand national rugby teams near the start of September.”

Stellenbosch added that they expected to return to the Western Cape for their first Betway Premiership home fixture of the season, set to be played against Golden Arrows at the Danie Craven Stadium on either September 15 or September 18, depending on whether Stellenbosch manage to reach the next round of the Caf Confederation Cup.