Centre Chiefs Can Win It But……

MOLEFHI KANNEMEYER OBENNE

At the end of the Debswana First Division South League, 2019/20 season, there should be a champion and a promotional playoff candidate on the second spot, to fight another chance of getting promoted to the Premier League.Unfortunately two bottom teams must also be automatically relegated to regional division one league. This article looks at the possibilities and permutation of who will win the league in the Debswana First Division South League.

As It Stands
After a round of 12 games, Mogoditshane Fighters sits at the top of league log standings with 27 points from a possible 36. The returns say it’s a 75 percent success rate. On the second spot lies the ambitious Masitaoka of Molepolole with 26 points, on the third spot with a 5 points deficit of 26, is the legendary Mochudi Centre Chiefs and fourth placed is the Gabane based Gabane Santos, formerly called Uniao Flamingo Santos. The big question will always be, is the current situation something that we can rely on? Only longevity is the determinant. Going into the Christmas break, the Samba Boys as Mogoditshane Fighters is affectionately known will be happiest cohort amongst the 12 teams in the league. The saddest thing though, is that no one likes your stay there, you have yourself as your own enemy and competitors all vying for your blood. You can be your own enemy if you can’t manage yourself affairs well especially in the transfer window as you might change the team thinking you need to beef up, only to find your team struggling because you need to integrate new players. This is not only for Fighters but also for the chasing pack. Fighters will remember what happened in 2016/17 season while trying to boast their squad in January, only to surrender the league to Notwane and Prison respectively. We can only hope they learnt a lesson and will draw solace from Romans 5 verse 5, that says, “And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”

The Championship Brutal War
Most people in Molepolole are basking in the rays of excitement looking at the imminent prospect of Masitaoka making it to the Premier League for the first time in the club’s history. Coach Nelson Olebile’s side is the only team in the league to have gone 5 games on a winning streak. This can give them an advantage over their competitors only to a certain extent, thus provided they maintain such a streak during a period they are playing against their competitors. A 5 games winning streak in this league is a rare occurrence. This run of form came at the right moment and has been key to their championship aspiration as it had placed them second on the log. The championship brutal war is amongst the top four alluded teams. Against these competitors, Masitaoka won 2 out of the 3 games, beating both Santos and Centre Chiefs, 1 – 0 each and lost 2 – 1 to Fighters. Santos lost to Masitaoka (1-0), twice to Centre Chiefs (1-2 & 1-3 respectively), and only beat Fighters (1-0). While Mochudi Centre Chiefs pocketed 9 points of the possible 12 so far by beating Fighters (1-0), Santos twice, only lost to Masitaoka (1 – 0). Mogoditshane Fighters on the other side only won once against Masitaoka (2 – 1) and lost to both Chiefs and Santos with an identical score line of 1-0. In this mini league Centre Chiefs leads the pack (9points), followed by Masitaoka (6points), then Fighters (3 points) and lastly Santos (3 points).

The Goals
In terms of the goals, Fighters has scored 17 goals and conceded only 7, thus a positive 10 goal difference and their top and league leading goalscorer is the experienced Khumbulani Madziba with 6 goals. Masitaoka on the second spot, have 13 scored, 7 against, and a goal difference of positive 6, with Godfrey “Majoro” Sethibe scoring 5 of those goals. On the third spot is Centre Chiefs with 12 scored, 8 conceded. The team boosts two top goalscorers with 4 goals each (Koketso “Slender” Mphokothi and Terrence Mandaza), which no other team has. Lastly is Santos with 12 scored and 9 against, making a goal difference of a plus 3, Mandla ”Spikiri” Mgadla scored 4 of them. Pundits would say, goals win you games and defence wins you championships, vividly so Mogoditshane Fighters is cruising and the right combination, unfortunately though Santos is lingering behind in this ‘saying’.

Considerably so, The As It Stands, The Goals and Championship Brutal War bikinis reveal that Tiroyamodimo ‘TRX’ Mohambi coached Mogoditshane Fighters have an advantage of winning the league or getting a second spot at least, Masitaoka is destined to surprise a lot of people owing to how they have applied themselves thus far, and Mochudi Centre Chiefs is the dark horse of the race and can squeeze themselves especially having beaten both challengers in Santos twice and leaders Fighters. Santos’s losses to Chiefs twice and once to Masitaoka reveal that they are the weakest competitor. But unfortunately these statistics have hidden some vital information, that, Fighters once stayed there and lost it, Masitaoka has a history of staying on top of the log and staying forever, the resurgence and threat possessed by Centre Chiefs with the experienced Champion Coach in Elias Chinyemba and his assistant Mpho Mabogo (who since coming to Chiefs, Chiefs won two games in a row against Santos), Santos are seasoned campaigners and have been in this situation before, its gaffers Parker Mampori and Innocent Ranku know what it takes to win the league or at least a promotional playoff spot. In the end the bikinis favour Mogoditshane Fighters, form points to Masitaoka, ancestors of football vouch for Mochudi Centre Chiefs and the history says Gabane Santos. The battle line has been draw who is it going to be the Champion and Promotional Playoff spot winner?