Teams' battle to beat relegation hots up

By Kamlesh Gosai

The competition among the teams in the lower half of the Castle Super League log will intensify as clubs battle to avoid relegation.

With the number of teams to be promoted from the lower division and those to be relegated from the Vodacom Second Division yet to be determined, the clubs are in the dark about the number of points they will need to guarantee safety.

The consensus is that between four and six teams could get the chop. Durban Spurs, at the bottom of the log with only three points, are merely fulfilling their obligations of seeing out their remaining eight matches, even though, technically, they can retain hope of survival if they win their matches and teams above them falter.

Second from bottom Montford Heights, with five matches left, will most likely be the beneficiaries of three points at home to Spurs. Their top striker, Neville Ramsamy, who bagged a goal in the 4-2 defeat to University of Natal last weekend, should enjoy freedom of movement against the demoralised Spurs outfit.

Concentration will be the main concern for Ashtown United when they try to get the better of Damara Blues at the Asherville ground this afternoon.

The inexperience of youth has been their downfall, said manager Boysee Moodley. "I definitely think we can make it if we get into the top 10. That's important. We have six matches in hand and the guys are outplaying teams. But they are young and inexperienced. We just seem to be struggling with our concentration in the last 10 minutes. That's when the other, more experienced, teams get the better of us. If we can maintain our concentration we should be okay. Otherwise I'm very happy with the side."

Real Swallows, who are also struggling for points in their bid to avoid relegation, will come out strong when they visit second-placed Umlazi Mantech. A defeat for Mantech will leave log leaders Danefield needing only five points to wrap up the championship from their remaining six matches.

This weekend's inter-district matches have seen the postponement of the fixture between Railways United and University. Although out of the running for the title, University manager Vijay Balram said he was happy to see the players performing well again.

The team has lost midfielder Lincoln de Waal and sweeper David Crawford to Cherrians while coach Prem Vayapuri has indicated that he will quit at the end of the season, said Balram.

The club's future in the league is also uncertain. Balram said the inconsistencies in refereeing prevented all clubs from having a fair chance at challenging for the title. "The league must give us assurances that things will change. If the commission of inquiry into refereeing comes back and says that there was nothing happening, then we will seriously reconsider our position," he added.