Bloemfontein-based young women’s football club Inter Madrid is eying promotion to the country’s second-tier Sasol Women’s League. The team will compete on round robin basis against Clever Girls from Thabo Mofutsanyane, Ugu FC from Lejweleputswa.
The winner and the runner-up of three clubs are automatically promoted to the Free State stream. Set for 29 January in Welkom the play-offs will be without representations from the Fezile Dabi and Xhariep regions.
The three finalists qualified by virtue of winning in their respective regions of the South African Football Association (Safa). Madrid beat Napoli from Botshabelo to lift the Mangaung Metro region title at the final played during this just-ended December.
It means Madrid finished the 2021 season unbeaten and are hoping to continue the onslaught at the provincial final. It is the club’s first attempt to gain promotion to the second highest league which has 16 teams and is played in the nine provinces.
The provincial champion will receive a gold medal, the runner-up a silver medal while third position achiever will get a bronze medal. The team finishing in third position will stand a chance to be promoted to the second-tier rank along with the club that will finish in fourth position at the provincial play-offs.
This will only be possible if Ixias FC from Welkom gets promoted to Safa National Women’s League – the country’s first-ever professional women’s league. Ixias is among the nine provincial winners that qualified to compete nationally for promotion to the professional league. They secured a spot in the national final after beating Kovsie women’s team at the provincial final played during October last year.
Safa has decided to stage the national promotion play-offs featuring the nine provincial winners in Durban during March.
Clubs billed to compete for fourth position at the FS play-offs are Napoli from Botshabelo, Mangaung Ajax from Thabo Mofutsanyane and Kutloanong Arsenal, representing Lejweleputswa region. They will also compete on round robin basis to determine their respective position. The winner thereof will stand a chance to be promoted to the second-tier Sasol Women’s League.
