Kickoff (Cape Town)
15 August 2008
Port Elizabeth soccer fans who have already been dealt a blow with the decision that the Windy City will not be able to host Confederations Cup matches next year, were floored again yesterday with the news that their Eastern Province Rugby Union Stadium pitch was not up to standard to stage Premiership fixtures.
Bay United, who won promotion to top flight last season, will now have to play its first Absa Premiership match against Moroka Swallows on August 30 at the Dube Birds' home grounds in Germiston.
The PSL's chief operating officer Professor Ronnie Schloss, confirmed this to Avusa Group News yesterday, adding that the game was scheduled for the EPRU stadium, as this was United's home game.
"We inspected the pitch last week and it was not up to scratch, its not playable. The safety of the players and spectators is at risk.
"The stadium doesn't meet a lot of the criteria. It's an old stadium, we accept that but, at least, it has to meet our minimum requirements."
He said the biggest concern was the state of the pitch itself and the fence around it, which was falling.
"They told us they will start working at it soon, and we will look at it as soon as they finish, but we don't guarantee anything. We have already told Moroka Swallows that they will have to host the game."
Bay United spokesperson Vuyo Mvoko said the PSL had sent them a letter indicating that the pitch was not up to standard.
"They stated that the pitch is uneven, that there are holes and indentations in the field, and that the field needs to be top dressed and levelled."
Mvoko said PSL had said that until these issues were addressed, they would not give permission for the United/Swallows game to go ahead at the EPRU Stadium.
United's management, together with the municipality, which had leased the stadium's management to EPRU, are working around the clock to fix the problem.
An official close to United, who spoke on condition of anonymity, however, condemned the municipality for failure to ensure that the stadium's upkeep was up to scratch.
"The municipality has failed to service the EPRU Stadium. It goes to show why we lost the right to host the Confederations Cup.
"If they can't manage such a small stadium, what will happen to the gigantic 2010World Cup Stadium in North End?"
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