It was all smiles for Gqom Gang FC when the South African Football Association (SAFA), Uthukela region, finally handed over the championship trophy to the team.

The trophy was handed over on Tuesday (June 9) during a short event that was held at Lambert Park.

The handing over was delayed following a first-position-dispute between Ladysmith Juventus FC and Gqom Gang. Juventus initially finished the season on 79 points, followed by Gqom Gang on 78.

However, things changed after Green Mamba FC was expelled from the league. League rules state that if a team is expelled, all points gained by other teams against that team are deducted. Juventus had previously beaten Green Mamba and earned three points; those points were deducted. Gqom Gang had drawn with Green Mamba and had earned one point, so only one point was deducted from their total.

As a result, Gqom Gang moved to the top of the log with 77 points, one point ahead of Ladysmith Juventus on 76 points.

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Gqom Gang chairperson Bonga Mnguni thanked the supporters, as well as Estcourt News for always reporting on the club. He added that ‘the dispute was not difficult to solve, because everything was clear’.

“Now we are focusing on the playoff matches that will be held in Port Shepstone, starting from Tuesday (June 17). We want to state categorically that we are not going there just to add numbers; we are going there to compete. We want the team to be promoted to the Motsepe League, but that will start by making sure we win both games in our group,” said a confident Mnguni.

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