Early start to club licensing for First Division
Boitumelo Khutsafalo | Wednesday September 6, 2017 14:54
League secretary, Sidney Magagane said the First Division South new season would be launched this weekend, likely to take place at the National Stadium.
Magagane said the idea behind taking the game to a stadium is encouraged by the Club Licensing, which currently is binding for all Premier League sides. He said they will try and see if they cannot switch some games to such venues when Premier League matches are on break to enable lower division sides to get used to playing on such surfaces.
Magagane said they want to try and introduce some of the licensing requirements in the lower division to ready them for the exercise. He said they have since introduced pre-match meetings before any First Division match this season. The idea, he said is to ensure that in cases where they would be a clash in colours for the kit, the error can be rectified on time. He said the idea is to slowly move towards professionalism.
The First Division South launch will take place during the match between Notwane and Mochudi Rovers. “If you remember well, the launch last season took place at the Francistown Stadium with a double header. It is just a formality to showcase to the people what it is that take place in the First Division as well as introduce our sponsors, Debswana, to the spectators,” he said. The league has been under Debswana sponsorship since 2013. The initial deal ended in May last year before the two parties agreed to renew. The current deal comes to an end after the 2018/2019 season and it is valued at P6 million in total.
With the Premier League season yet to start, First Division South kicked-off their schedule last weekend while the First Division North starts this weekend. Magagane said the decision to start last weekend was based on the fact they use dusty grounds, which do not have efficient drainage system. He said they are trying to cater for any natural causes, which might disturb their schedule. “We always try and cater for such occurrences and have about three weeks planned ahead to be used in cases where some games had to be postponed earlier. We want to make sure by the end of December nothing is left behind from the first round,” he said.
The other reason he said, was to cater for the FA Cup, which is expected to start this season. He said they want First Division sides to be able to compete fiercely in the tournament. He stated that the early start to the league will ensure that by the time the competition starts, First Division sides will be in a better shape and able to match Premier League sides in the tournament.
The first week of the league produced three victories and three draws. Notwane, Letlapeng and Prisons XI set up the pace with victories over Lesirane, Red Sparks and Black Rangers respectively.
Next weekend Notwane will take on Rovers while Letlapeng lock horns with Matebejane in Ramotswa. Red Sparks host Prisons XI, Lesirane visit Modipane United while Mogoditshane Fighters take on Broadhurst United. The remaining fixture for the weekend is that of Black Rangers and Black Peril in Tsabong.
Meanwhile, the Botswana Premier League will also launch the 2017/2018 BTC Premiership today at Grand Palm. The league is scheduled to start on September 15.