THOHOYANDOU – Black Leopards held a celebration party at the Vevisa Lodge in Thohoyandou after their match against Santos Football Club on Sunday, a match that they had won 1-0. During the ceremony the managing director of the team, Mr David Thidiela, defined the previous season as the worst for his team.

He reiterated that the team had spent eight months fighting for survival at the bottom of the log and that things had changed for the better after the acquisition of the services of Mr Walter Rautmann as the new coach for the team.

He further stated that the team had won seven of their eight matches that they had played under the guidance of Mr Rautmann. The MEC for Safety and Security, Mrs Dikeledi Magadzi, emphasised that the whole province would have suffered a big blow had Black Leopards been relegated. She defined sports as one of the best tools in fighting crime and unemployment.

During the ceremony, the MEC for Sports and Culture in the province, Mrs Rosinah Semenya, said that she had been invited to attend the recent league match between Black Leopards and Dynamos that was played in Giyani Stadium. According to her she could not attend the match, for the simple reason that she had both teams at heart. "It was my wish to see Dynamos qualifying for the SAA Super 8 competition, while on the other hand I was praying that Leopards must escape the relegation axe," she said.

Semenya further indicated that it was her wish to see Highlandspark Silver Stars gain promotion to the elite league and thus increase the number of PSL teams in the province to three. The coach of the team, Mr Walter Rautmann, mentioned that credit should go to the players, who were always obedient to his instructions.