Greek Queens in do or die play-offs
JOBURG – We missed so many chances of promotion over the years and 2021 seemed to be our year, says Athanassouli.
After failing to win the Gauteng Sasol Women’s League by a whisker for the past two years, Croesus Ladies finally made it count this time around in the 2021 season.
Better known as the Greek Queens, the Balfour Park-based side, has dominated the Sasol league since 2018 but often fell short at the last hurdle to settle for a
second spot.
But 2021 was their year when they conquered all and sundry to win the Gauteng provincial league and thereby secured a spot to represent the province in the National Championships of the Sasol Women’s League. The championships were due to be held last December but had to be postponed due to the onslaught of the fourth wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The win has also opened a window for possible promotion to the National Women’s League.
The South African Football Association (Safa), after consultation with Sasol as the sponsors of the provincial leagues, has indicated the play-offs will be held in Durban as of January 17.
Two teams will be promoted to the National Women’s League-run Hollywood bets League for the last time as Safa intends to introduce a new system of promotion and relegation as of the end of the 2022 season.
The winners of the various Sasol provincial leagues will lock horns to decide the national champion of the various leagues, which will then gain automatic promotion to the Hollywood bets League, along with the runner-up of the championships.
Greek Queens manager Maria Athanassouli told Alex News the girls were raring to go for the championship play-offs which she described as ‘do or die’ promotional games for her side.
“We missed so many chances of promotion over the years and 2021 seemed to be our year and we made the most of it. It was a very hard road but I am glad we finally made it. The girls have truly come a long way and the championship playoffs will be a do or die affair for them,” she said.
The Greek Queens accumulated 84 points from 28 wins, with no draws and only two losses to Tuks and Soweto Fabulous. They were nine points clear of their nearest rivals, Tuks Ladies, and 18 points ahead of third-placed Wits Ladies.
