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TimesLIVE
16-07-2025
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Rayners should have been nominated for Footballer of the Season
End of season awards are by their nature highly divisive and the announcement of the nominees for last season's best performers to compete for the top prizes in the PSL Awards was not going to avoid the storm. After the long wait, the Premier Soccer League (PSL) released their list of nominees on Tuesday and, as per script, the list has been met with strong and contrasting opinions from all quarters. The list is long but sharp focus is on the main categories of the Footballer and Betway Premiership Players' Player of the Season awards, where Mamelodi Sundowns striker Iqraam Rayners is conspicuous by his absence. There are those who agree with the coaches and players who voted for not including Rayners in those categories but there are those, like me, who strongly argue he should have been shortlisted. Footballer of the Season is judged by Betway Premiership coaches and the Players' Player of the Season, as the title suggests, by fellow professionals. It is surprising many did not seen Rayners as worthy of a nomination for the top awards, to be announced on July 29. #𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬𝟐𝟓: Here are the three players nominated for the PSL Footballer of the Season award. — Official PSL (@OfficialPSL) July 15, 2025 Coaches and players have intimate knowledge of the league they take part in but there is nothing stopping supporters from disagreeing with the surprising choices they have made. Some will ask what the point is of this argument because Rayners has been pipped by teammate Lucas Ribeiro, Relebohile Mofokeng of Orlando Pirates and Sekhukhune United attacker Keletso Makgalwa for both categories. Nothing is going to change the situation but this is a good point of discussion and it would be interesting to find out from those who did not vote for him, what motivated their decisions. From where I am sitting, it does not look like coaches and fellow players who voted for Ribeiro, Mofokeng and Makgalwa looked closely at Rayners' impressive goal contribution numbers. 📆 𝐒𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 The #𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬𝟐𝟓 ceremony will take place on Tuesday, 29 July, live on the SuperSport PSL channel and SABC Sport. — Official PSL (@OfficialPSL) July 15, 2025 Rayners contributed 14 goals and nine assists in 26 matches for the Brazilians on their way to their eighth successive Premiership title, which is significantly better than Mofokeng (five goals and eight assists in 26 games) and Makgalwa (four goals and 11 assists in 26 matches). Those who don't want to go with numbers, there is a strong footballing argument for Rayners that he was largely the front-line Sundowns attacker ahead of Peter Shalulile, Arthur Sales, Ribeiro (who usually played deeper) and Tashreeq Matthews. As part of coach Miguel Cardoso's attacking plan, he was sometimes used as a forward decoy and this allowed Ribeiro, Sales and Matthews to threaten opposition defenders. The Footballer of the Season award, too, is decided across all the PSL's competitions, while the Player's Player award is for the Premiership. So Rayners not making the cut in the former is even more strange. Rayners was instrumental in helping Downs reach the Carling Knockout final, where they lost 2-1 to Magesi FC in Bloemfontein, with a solid contribution of four goals in as many matches. Rayners — who also had Champions League and Bafana Bafana commitments, which is only relevant for this discussion in considering how it added to his workload — contributed 18 goals and nine assists after 33 matches in all PSL competitions. That is notably is more than both Mofokeng and Makgalwa, which seems the major factor in Rayner's ommission being so widely discussed. In my view, Ribeiro must be named the Footballer of the Season. He established himself as a significant cog in the Sundowns attack and his contribution of 17 goals and 12 assists from 34 matches in all competitions, often from a deeper role, sets him apart as the best player in the country last campaign. There is a strong case for exciting Mofokeng because he scored crucial goals for Pirates, sometimes in the high-profile matches, though he did lack consistency in front of goal. For someone who plays in an advancing attacking role as a winger, No 10 or striker, Mofokeng's return of only seven goals and 12 assists in 36 league and cup games is hardly world class. To be frank, Makgalwa's statistical return in cup competitions was poor and he did not set the league alight with four goals and 11 assists in 26 appearances for a team that did not even finish in the top three. His case could have been enhanced if he helped Sekhukhune to a top three finish but they were pipped to the Confederation Cup by Stellenbosch FC and also did not make it to a cup final. If you look closely at Rayners' goal contributions last season, they are better than Makgalwa and Mofokeng and it is disappointing that for some strange reason, some of the coaches and players were not impressed by his contribution. In my view, he was the second-best player in the league after Ribeiro because of the influence he had for coach Cardoso and the dominant Sundowns who won the league convincingly. He played a role in many of Ribeiro's goals, and vice versa. I have the respect for coaches and players, but I don't agree with them because Rayners was consistent and scored important goals for Sundowns and he deserved at least a nomination for his troubles.
TimesLIVE
15-07-2025
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
Sundowns' Ribeiro, Pirates' Mofokeng up for prizes as PSL Awards nominees announced
Mamelodi Sundowns' Brazilian striker Lucas Ribeiro and Orlando Pirates' talented young attacker Relebohile Mofokeng were the prominent names put forward as the nominees for the 2024-25 PSL Awards were announced on Tuesday. The Premier Soccer League (PSL) announced the nominees on its social media platforms, also revealing the awards ceremony takes place on July 29. Ribeiro and Mofokeng were nominated for PSL Footballer of the Season and would seem to to be the leading candidates for the most prestigious category. However, Sekhukhune United's Keletso Makgalwa put himself up with major names with big nominations for Footballer and Player's Player of the Season. Skilful attacker Makgalwa got a vote of confidence in how his fellow professionals view his abilities making a rare entry for a player not on the books of a 'big three' club as a nominee for the prestigious Premiership Players Player of the Season award. He competes against the same two rivals there as the Footballer award in Ribeiro and Mofokeng. #𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬𝟐𝟓: Here are the three players nominated for the PSL Footballer of the Season award. — Official PSL (@OfficialPSL) July 15, 2025 Competition could be stiff for the Premiership's Coach of the Season award between Miguel Cardoso of champions Sundowns, Jose Riveiro of runners-up Pirates and Steve Barker, whose Stellenbosch FC ended in third again despite losing many players. Pirates' attacking duo of 'Cocomelons' Mofokeng and Mohau Nkota are nominated for the league's Young Player of the Season award with Sundowns' impressive centreback talent Malibongwe Khoza. Downs' Marcello Allende and Teboho Mokoena compete with Makhehlene Makhaula of Pirates for Premiership Midfielder of the Season. The Brazilians' Grant Kekana, Thabo Moloisane of Stellenbosch and Nkosinathi Sibisi of Bucs are nominated for Defender of the Season. Sipho Chaine of Pirates, Magesi FC's Elvis Chipezeze and Sundowns' Ronwen Williams vie for Goalkeeper of the Season. Fawaaz Basadien of Stellenbosch, Ribeiro and Glody Lilepo of Kaizer Chiefs are the nominees for Premiership Goal of the Season. #𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬𝟐𝟓: Here are the three goals that are in the running for the Betway Premiership Goal of the Season. — Official PSL (@OfficialPSL) July 15, 2025 Basadien is nominated for his stunning strike from deep in his own half to beat off-his-line goalkeeper Darren Keet in Stellies' 3-0 win against Cape Town City at Athlone Stadium on September 26. Ribeiro's strike came from a devastating run, dribbling from inside his own half in Downs' 4-1 thrashing of Pirates at Loftus Versfeld on December 17 to finish past goalkeeper Sipho Chaine. Lilepo's strike came in Chiefs' 2-1 defeat against Marumo Gallants at FNB Stadium on April 26, dribbling past some defenders from the left touchline and striking from the edge of the box past goalkeeper Washington Arubi. Chiefs, who had an otherwise indifferent season, dominate the nominees for Player of the Tournament for the tournament in which they won their first trophy in 10 years, the Nedbank Cup. Amakhosi defender Inácio Miguel, attacker Pule Mmodi and midfielder Gaston Sirino are the nominees. Pirates, the losing finalists with a team containing many talented youngsters, dominate the Nedbank's Most Promising Player of the Tournament category. Bucs' Mbekezeli Mbokazi, Mofokeng and Nkotoa, who has since joined Saudi club Al-Ettifaq, are the nominees. 📆 𝐒𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 The #𝐏𝐒𝐋𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬𝟐𝟓 ceremony will take place on Tuesday, 29 July, live on the SuperSport PSL channel and SABC Sport. — Official PSL (@OfficialPSL) July 15, 2025 The nominees for the MTN8 Last Man Standing award for the best player in the competition won by Pirates were the Buccaneers' Deon Hotto and Mofokeng and Basadien of losing finalists Stellies. Among other interesting nominees are Amajita stars Tylon Smith, the Stellenbosch defender, and Sundowns midfielder Gomolemo Kekana being put forward for the DStv Diski Challenge (DDC) Player of the Season. The pair, who played a crucial role in Amajita winning South Africa's first U-20 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt this year, are joined by midfielder Ntandoyenkosi Nkosi of Kaizer Chiefs, the team that won its first DDC title in 2024-25. PSL Awards nominees Betway Premiership Player's Player of the Season: Lucas Ribeiro (Mamelodi Sundowns), Keletso Makgalwa (Sekhukhune United), Relebohile Mofokeng (Orlando Pirates) Betway Premiership Player's Player of the Season: Lucas Ribeiro (Mamelodi Sundowns), Keletso Makgalwa (Sekhukhune United), Relebohile Mofokeng (Orlando Pirates) Betway Premiership Coach of the Season: Steve Barker (Stellenbosch FC), Miguel Cardoso (Mamelodi Sundowns), Jose Riveiro (Orlando Pirates) Betway Premiership Young Player of the Season: Malibongwe Khoza (Mamelodi Sundowns), Relebohile Mofokeng (Orlando Pirates), Mohau Nkota (Orlando Pirates) Betway Premiership Midfielder of the Season: Marcello Allende (Mamelodi Sundowns), Makhehlene Makhaula (Orlando Pirates), Teboho Mokoena (Mamelodi Sundowns) Betway Premiership Defender of the Season: Grant Kekana (Mamelodi Sundowns), Thabo Moloisane (Stellenbosch FC), Nkosinathi Sibisi (Orlando Pirates) Betway Premiership Goalkeeper of the Season: Sipho Chaine (Orlando Pirates), Elvis Chipezeze (Magesi FC), Ronwen Williams (Mamelodi Sundowns) Nedbank Cup Player of the Tournament: Inácio Miguel (Kaizer Chiefs), Pule Mmodi (Kaizer Chiefs), Gaston Sirino (Kaizer Chiefs) Nedbank Cup Most Promising Player of the Tournament: Mbekezeli Mbokazi (Orlando Pirates), Relebohile Mofokeng (Orlando Pirates), Mohau Nkota (Orlando Pirates) Carling Knockout Player of the Tournament: Elvis Chipezeze (Magesi FC), Edmore Chirambadare (Magesi FC), Iqraam Rayners (Mamelodi Sundowns) Motsepe Foundation Championship Players' Player of the Season: Banele Hlophe (JDR Stars), Joslin Kamatuka (Durban City), Muzomuhle Khanyi (Hungry Lions) Motsepe Foundation Championship Goalkeeper of the Season: Emile Lako (Casric Stars), Sekhoane Moerane (Orbit College), Dumisani Msibi (Durban City) Motsepe Foundation Championship Young Player of the Season: Luke Baartman (Cape Town Spurs), Teboho Lekhatla (Casric Stars), Siphamandla Mhlongo (Milford FC)
