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Petros Kausiyo Deputy Sports Editor
THE Premier Soccer League have revised their fixtures with the top-flight body citing the need to avert a clash in programme with the upcoming African Region Five Youth Games in Bulawayo, as one of the reasons they want the season to end well before November 30.
Initially, the league programme would have stretched into the second week of November with the Week 25 fixtures pencilled in for November 8-9, but the PSL want the Week 25 games to have been played by the end of September and the revised fixtures came into effect on July 18.

PSL chief executive Kenny Ndebele said yesterday that the elite league was under pressure to ensure their programme for the 2014 season ended smoothly despite the fact that the Bulawayo teams — log leaders Highlanders, How Mine, Chicken Inn, and Bantu Rovers — will be affected by the closure of Luveve and Barbourfields.

Ndebele said the league also wanted to ensure that Zimbabwe’s representatives for the Champions League and the Confederation Cup are registered with the Confederation of African Football in time for the continental body’s initial registration deadline of November 30.

The PSL chief executive also cited the Warriors’ participation at the African Nations Championships in Cape Town, South Africa, where Ian Gorowa’s men finished fourth at the tournament that started on January 11 and ended on February 1, as one of the reasons that contributed to the late start of their 2014 term.

“We started our season a bit late because of the CHAN tournament and also the fact that we had not concluded negotiations with our sponsors for the new package for the league, it became necessary to delay the start of the season,’’ Ndebele said.

However, to the benefit of the clubs, their traditional sponsors Delta Beverages not only reaffirmed their commitment to bankroll the Premiership, through their Castle Lager brand, but also introduced a new 16-team knockout tournament, the Chibuku Super Cup.

NetOne also chipped in with the One Wallet Cup, which is being contested by the teams that finished in the top eight last season, while provision has been made on the fixtures for the Mbada Diamonds Cup.

“We also got the One Wallet Cup and a new 16-team tournament and this meant that we also had to have more mid-week games.
“The Region Five Youth Games might be starting in December, but as PSL they will affect us from as early as next week when Luveve will be closed for renovations and in September Barbourfields will be closed.

“We have resolved as a league that we need to confirm the Caf participants by November 30 so that our clubs can also register players on time,’’ Ndebele said.
The PSL, Ndebele also said, were still to factor in the Zifa calendar in their programme and although there are huge doubts over the Cosafa Senior Challenge Cup, which had been scheduled for Botswana in September, indications are that the regional body is trying to make frantic efforts to revive the competition that seems to be suffering from stop-start motions.

A two-team Challenge Cup — the TM Pick ‘n’ Pay competition — is also being arranged, but Ndebele said the event would only be confirmed by a meeting of the PSL’s board of governors.

The 16 club chairmen form the PSL’s board of governors, who also now represent the league on the Zifa assembly.
“Our clubs are aware of what the AGM had resolved with regards staging of two-team tournaments because there had been a resolution for collective bargaining whenever we engage sponsors so that whatever deals we get they cater for all the teams.

“So the board would need to make a resolution on that and amend what had come out of the AGM.
“We are also saying going forward