Durban City rise amidst Royal AM’s struggles

IT is as close to karma as it can get. As the curtain seems to be falling on flamboyant Durban club Royal AM, their sworn enemies Durban City FC are on an upward trajectory as they prepare for the Nedbank Cup clash with calmness.

Royal AM were scheduled to face fellow KwaZulu-Natal side Milford FC in the Nedbank Cup last 32 on Monday. However, the fixture has been suspended indefinitely due to Royal facing problems with the taxman, which has led to their finances being frozen.

Coach Simo Dladla reminds us why soccer is the ultimate teacher: it challenges, humbles, and rewards those who rise to the occasion. After 77 minutes, the bench stepped up, the team united, and we claimed a 4-2 victory. That’s the game of soccer. That’s Durban City FC💙⚽ pic.twitter.com/UUyyex7O4B

— Durban City FC (@DurbanCity_FC) January 12, 2025

On the side, Durban City – who changed their name from Maritzburg United after Royal AM forced them out of their Pietermaritzburg home Harry Gwala Stadium – have the win at their backs as they prepare to face ABC Motsepe League side Lerumo Lions on Saturday.

This fixture will be played at Olympia park in Rusternburg (kick-off 3pm).

The calm nerves in the Durban City camp were embodied by head coach Simo Dladla in his media address in Durban on Wednesday. Dladla started by making it clear that he will not pass up a chance to rest some of his regular players, as they view this match as another fixture to give their fringe players a run.

“We don’t have any pressure and as such, we are going to rest our regulars and integrate the new players and give others a chance,” said Dladla.

“So, this is an opportunity we are looking forward to without any pressure and we (as a technical team) are hoping that the players will see it as an opportunity without any pressure too.

“We welcome this fixture. It will serve us well in terms of giving us more games (to prepare for the crucial league matches). We are currently leading the championship.

“We are a team that has been consistent with our line-ups and training regimes. Up to this point, not everybody (players) has had a chance to play and also, during this transfer period, we’ve added a few players.

“So, this fixture will give us a chance to introduce new players into the team and also give those that haven’t had a chance to play, a chance to get a run.”

It is not only the Nedbank Cup prospects that are a difference between the two sides – Royal AM’s league fixtures are suspended too whilst there are also motions from the legislature that they be stripped of their R27 million Msunduzi Municipality sponsorship.

Durban City on the other side, are leading the Motsepe Foundation standings as they target automatic promotion. Indeed, this could see the sides pass each other at the cross-roads with the one going down and the other going up.

“The mandate from the chairman is very straightforward; a straight promotion to the Premiership. So, we want to win this match (against Lions) so we can have even more games to give all our players game time,” said Dladla.

“The Nedbank Cup as a tournament is a good cup for us (teams who are targeting Premiership promotion) to assess our strengths.”

Dladla reiterated that by resting his top players, he is not undermining the ABC Motsepe side.

“I will not lie, there is not much we know about them except that they are also top on their log after 15 games. They also score more than they concede. They are coached by Mkhanyiseli Siwahla (who played for the likes of Ajax Cape Town and Black Aces), whom I know also sometimes comes in as a player. I know Siwahla very well as a player.”