No one will be relegated, PSL threatens

By Ishemunyoro Chingwere

The Premier Soccer League and Zifa are headed for a nasty confrontation with the former threatening to take the unprecedented route of not relegating any team should the latter insist on four teams being demoted from the top flight at the end of this season.

The PSL clubs met in the capital yesterday in the wake of Peter Dube’s suspension from his post as the league’s chairman.

The clubs resolved to maintain their stance that only two teams will be relegated.

It was also resolved in that meeting that the PSL would not relegate any team if Zifa insisted on four teams being demoted.

An Emergency Committee of the PSL will superintend over the affairs of the league pending the outcome of the action taken against Dube or election of a new chairman.

PSL chief executive Kenny Ndebele will now report directly to the Emergency Committee.
Caps United chairman Lewis Uriri was appointed into the Emergency Committee as the spokesperson.

The Zifa Assembly on October 29 reversed a resolution passed at the PSL 2015 AGM to relegate two and promote two, setting the mother body on collision course with the top flight league which had overseen 27 of 30 rounds of fixtures on the strength of two going down and two coming up.

The PSL is adamant they cannot relegate 25 percent of the league as this was against their Harare Declaration of 2009 where clubs concurred that relegating four teams was unsustainable.

The regions meanwhile are clear they will go by the Zifa council resolution of four up-four down.

“Our position is very clear, whatever we do we are guided by the Zifa council and in this case they said our champion will be promoted so as far as we know Black Rhinos will be playing premier league football next year,” Northern region chair Willard Manyengavana said.

His sentiments were echoed by his Southern Region counterpart Mussa Mandaza, who said Bantu Rovers had already been crowned division champions and were thus part of the PSL. The Sunday Mail