By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Royal AM have submitted an urgent application appealing the decision to award Sekhukhune United the GladAfrica Championship title,citing “various gross misdirections of fact and/or errors of law” as the reason for the action.
The appeal comes a day after Polokwane City’s application to the Johannesburg high court to have an arbitration overturned that deducted three points from the side and awarded them to Sekhukhune was dismissed.
Gauteng deputy judge president Roland Sutherland on Saturday issued an order dismissing the application brought by Polokwane City to review the arbitration award given by Advocate Hilton Epstein on May 19‚ 2021.
Sutherland also ordered that costs incurred by Sekhukhune be borne by Polokwane City and Royal AM jointly and severally‚ the one paying the other to be absolved.
The Premier Soccer League (PSL) and the South African Football Association (Safa) are to bear their own costs.
The PSL responded almost immediately on Saturday afternoon‚ releasing a press release with the updated log that declared Sekhukhune as GladAfrica Championship champions.
But Royal AM will not go away quietly and have taken the matter to the Supreme Court of Appeal‚ with Safa‚ the PSL‚ Epstein‚ Sekhukhune‚ and Polokwane City named as the respondents.
In a leaked document, Royal AM outlined their motivation for filing the appeal against Premier Soccer League DC Hilton Epstein’s decision.
- There are other compelling reasons why the appeal should be heard, more particularly in that, the are conflicting arbitration awards and certainty is required.
- Royal AM FC was already placed as log leaders and automatic qualifiers to the Premier Soccer League and therefore enjoyed the legal right of incumbency and legal occupier of that position.
- Royal won the Championship on the field of play which is in keeping with the universal culture of football and the best interest of football stakeholders, including players and supporters.
- Sekhukhune United FC ought to have been penalized and not unjustly rewarded and enriched with promotion when it had surreptitiously reconfigured its protest from a Rule 35.2 charge to a contrived “ineligibility offence” and the “fielding of an ineligible player”, both of which were inapplicable.
- There are reasonable prospects of success, in the circumstances, that another court may and/or will come to a different conclusion.
The GladAfrica campaign ended a few weeks ago but the PSL is yet to crown the second-tier champions because this case was pending.
The consequence is that Sekhukhune United Football Club have secured automatic promotion to the DStv Premiership for next season, while Chippa United, Royal AM, and Richards Bay Football Clubs will contest the promotion/relegation play offs which will commence on June 15.