‘BULL’ IN SOMHLOLO TRACK RAP, STADIA CLOSED

MBABANE – The newly-installed synthetic running track at the revamped and still under construction Somhlolo National Stadium is nothing less than E3 million before installation.

It is for the aforementioned reason that it comes with strict maintenance rules, which the country failed to adhere to previously when Daimler Chrysler installed one at the stadium ahead of the latest one. One of the strict rules is that no car or vehicle must drive on the track, which is something that used to happen before and it damaged the previous track quickest. It has since come out that last Sunday during the inaugural MoMo Cup 2022 Finals, the venue’s terms and conditions were breached, particularly relating to the running track.

Impeccable sources revealed that after capital city giants and tournament favourites Mbabane Highlanders were booted out and their supporters could not stomach it, blocked the team from exiting the dressing rooms, they had to use emergency and safe exit from the stadium.“Highlanders had to leave through the tunnels into the pitch which forced their Manager Simiso ‘Space’ Jele to drive their Sprinter bus around into the pitch area and drove on the running track to pick up the team and drove out in high speed. It is that moment that some damage may have happened to the track,” an impeccable source said.

Given this incident, the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) is said to have acted proactively and quickly submitted a report to the stadium owners, Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Ministry after noting the incident. Coincidentally, the PLE then failed to get any of their MTN Premier League and MTN National First Division League games booked at the venue this weekend and it may be a little longer before games resume there again. “We weren’t shut out but we were informed that the stadium is under construction and we’ll be informed when it was ready for use again. After all, the facility’s availability was conditional,” responded Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) Chief Operations Officer (COO) Pat Vilakati when questioned about the latest stadium unavailability.

Vilakati would not link it to the report that they are said to have written to the ministry about the purported damage of the synthetic track. He had also been asked about the alleged damage after the Sprinter drove on it. “No vehicle is allowed to drive in the running track and our rules state clearly that the stadium owner is responsible to assess any damage to the property and then report back to us then we can take action. At the moment there’s been no feedback from the ministry but they are the ones who assess the damage,” Vilakati clarified.

Highlanders’ Public Relations Officer (PRO) Mandla Madonsela said he was not yet aware of that matter as much as he knew they had to leave the stadium in a rush as supporters bayed for their blood after losing to the same team twice within a month. Meanwhile, Somhlolo National Stadium is still under construction as it is done in phases, while the Mavuso Sports Centre has also closed to football bookings due to pitch grass maintenance. The latter is said to have cited the one day MoMo Cup play-offs that hosted three matches last month. There was no immediate comment from the ministry.

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