CAPE TOWN – Former Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Brent Carelse has described the relegation of prominent Cape Town teams to lower divisions as a deeply unfortunate development.
This follows the significant setback for Cape Town clubs, with Cape Town City being relegated to the Motsepe Foundation Championship and Cape Town Spurs dropping to the ABC Motsepe League.
Carelse spent a significant part of his career in the Mother City, representing clubs such as Hellenic, Ajax Cape Town, and Cape Town All Stars, where he developed his skills and made a lasting impact on the local football scene.
He has highlighted several factors contributing to this unfortunate situation, but ultimately, he described it as a sad moment for football in Cape Town.
“I think the decline has actually been sad because we’ve seen it happen now in the last five years,” said Carelse.
“Maybe we can go even further back, ten years, where we’ve lost clubs almost every season. There were Cape Town All Stars, they’re gone. There were Santos, they’re gone.
“There were Hellenic, they are gone. You know, all these clubs that are gone, that were there before and not just there, some clubs were competing on the professional ranks.”
Carelse added that this is unfortunate, especially for clubs with a rich history and significant legacy, which make it a point to reinvest in and give back to their communities.
He also pointed out that poor performances on the pitch are another consequence of the situation.
“It’s sad because, number one, it’s people who should understand the game – they’ve been long in the game, more than ten years and possibly more than 20 years,” he said.
“So, having said that, it also comes down to the performance on the field, I think. It wasn’t good enough from both teams, and this is the results of that.”
Having made over 105 appearances for Ajax Cape Town, Carelse criticized the poor performances, describing them as a sign of decline among Cape Town clubs.
He has also questioned the practice of selling top players purely for profit.
“We can say what we want about what Cape Town football is about and the development of society, we can talk as much as we want – but at the end of the day, it’s those 11 guys that go out there on the field for 90 minutes,” adds Carelse.
“We sell all our best players and then we expect to compete.
“We’re not going to compete if we’re selling our best players to your Sundowns, your Pirates, your Chiefs. But if we can keep them, meaning if we can pay them a little bit more and keep them young, keep them happy, they might bring you a cup, they might bring you a league. So it’s a balance.”
Since retiring, Carelse has played a key role in football development and is now one of the few former players appointed as an ambassador for the MTN8 Cup.
Speaking ahead of this weekend’s MTN8 semi-final between Stellenbosch FC and Sekhukhune United at Danie Craven Stadium on Saturday, he highlighted the efforts of former players in giving back to their communities and contributing positively to society.
“We go out to some rural areas where we find schools that don’t have equipment and we offer them, obviously, the Dream Bag initiative that we do at MTN8,” he said.
“And in those Dream Bags, there’s football equipment, there’s netball equipment.
“So we don’t only focus on football, we focus on sport in general, and we try to uplift those communities, and hopefully one day one of those kids will play in the MTN8 competition.
Image: Ayanda Ndamane.
