COVID-19 ROCKS TWO ELITE CLUBS

MHLUME – It is a scenario local football authorities were dreading.

Reports of players having tested positive for COVID-19 while some failed the temperature screening, is said to be another reason the MTN Premier League opening match between Moneni Pirates and Mhlume Peacemakers was cancelled yesterday afternoon at the Nsukuwansuku Stadium in Mhlume. The other reason given was that Pirates allegedly failed to produce all the registration documents for their players as only five cards were said to be availed to match officials.

Interviewed afterwards, Peacemakers coach Bongani Nxumalo confirmed that one of his players had tested positive for COVID-19 and was currently in isolation but politely asked not to reveal the identity of this player for ethical reasons. Nxumalo was, however, quick to assure that the player in question did not mingle with the rest of his team-mates, leading to the cancelled match. “The report I got was that one player was confirmed to have tested positive for COVID-19. Two other players showed signs of infection this (yesterday) morning and we ordered them to stay away from the rest of the team,” insisted the coach.

On the other hand, Pirates coach Ernest Mavuso, though not wanting to get into the finer details of the issue, acknowledged that the club’s officials took priority in the health and safety of players. This is despite claims that two of his players recorded over 37 degrees in body temperature when screened at the stadium entrance. Another impeccable source closer to the Moneni giants, alleged that two of the club’s players had shown symptoms of COVID-19 infection early yesterday morning and were removed from the trip and playing squad list.
Interestingly, Mavuso only confirmed knowledge of one COVID-19 positive case in his team.

“The reason why the match was cancelled made us realise that we are cared for and that health comes first. The player that tested positive for COVID-19 was not in the squad and his return to the team is uncertain for now,” said Mavuso. Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) Chief Operations Officer (COO) Pat Vilakati said they would wait for the match officials’ reports before deciding the fate of this game. He emphasised that the rules and regulations of the tournament would definitely apply when the final decision on what happens next is taken, possibly before the end of next week.

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