Betway Premiership LIVE: Marumo Gallants vs Kaizer Chiefs
Marumo Gallants host Kaizer Chiefs in their opening Betway Premiership fixture of the season at the Free State Stadium on Saturday, 14 September.
Kick-off is at 17:30.
Gallants return to the Premiership after buying a franchise while Kaizer Chiefs are out to bounce back from one of their worst seasons on record.
Follow the action with live scores from Flashscore.
Marumo Gallants vs Kaizer Chiefs: LIVE
Kaizer Chiefs are set to kick off their 55th top-flight season on Saturday afternoon.
Nasreddine Nabi is confident that Kaizer Chiefs are well-placed to begin the 2024/25 Betway Premiership positively: “The mood among the squad is good.
“We’ve finished the camp and apart from (Njabulo) Blom, who only joined recently and needs a bit of physical training to get up to speed, everyone is fit and available,” he says.
After spending a season in the National First Division following relegation in 2022/23, Gallants will be looking to get their comeback to the the top league off to a good start.
However, Nabi and his technological team have worked hard to prevent this from happening.
“Our analysts have done their research on the opponents and even watched some of their friendly games,” Nabi reveals, “So we are aware of their strengths and some of their weaknesses and have prepared accordingly.”
This match is sold out and non-ticket holders are urged to stay away from the ground to prevent overcrowding.
Rich history
From 1971 to 1979, Kaizer Chiefs went eight seasons in the top flight without dropping a single opening match. Indeed, Amakhosi won their first eight league games before finally losing 3-1 away to Hellenic on March 7, 1980. During their strong period, they scored some spectacular triumphs, including an 11-1 win over African Wanderers in 1971. Chiefs also defeated Mangaung United 5-1 at home in 1972, Witbank Black Aces 7-1 away in 1973, and African Wanderers 10-1 in 1974, the season they won the title.
In the PSL history, two Chiefs players have scored three or more goals in the club’s opening league game of the season. Collins Mbesuma led Chiefs to a 4-1 victory against Dynamos in Giyani to begin their league championship defence in 2004-05.
The Zambian striker started the season with a triple and went on to score 25 league goals.
Bernard Parker, Chiefs’ other PSL period hattrick hero, scored four goals in a 6-0 win away to AmaZulu in Durban – their best opening game win in the PSL era – as they laid the groundwork for a successful season in 2012-13.
Will Kaizer Chiefs start their season with a win?
Let us know by clicking on the comment tab below this article or by emailing info@thesouthafrican.com or sending a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1.
You can also follow @TheSAnews on X and The South African on Facebook for the latest news.
