Hoping for a change of fortune at their new home in Bloemfontein, Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila (TTM) FC secured a point against Casric Stars FC in the Motsepe Foundation Championship fixture played at the Dr RP Molemela Stadium on Saturday.
In this first outing here, the club experienced the blow of conceding an own goal. This saw the team share the spoils with Stars, currently second on the log with 38 points behind Polokwane City FC – who are at the top of the table with 40 points.
TTM, who scored first against the opponents from Mpumalanga, are under immense pressure to avoid relegation to the lower division at the end of the season. The new comers in the city are second at the bottom of the log with 17 points. They require at least 30 points (13 points in the remaining league matches), to avoid relegation.
Originally from Limpopo, the outfit arrived in the city a week ago. The relocation seems a last-ditch effort in a bid for survival. Hoping to spur on the winds of change, TTM immediately opted to discard the original blue colour for the evergreen and white of the now defunct Bloemfontein Celtic. The club had used the blue and red colours since its formation in 2018, after purchasing the franchise of Bidvest Wits FC.
This relocation means TTM will play the remaining home league fixtures in Bloemfontein. The matches are against Uthongathi FC on 1 March, Polokwane City on 4 March, Cape Town All Stars FC on 1 April, Magesi FC on 22 April, Hungry Lions FC on 30 April and Baroka FC on 14 May.
Johnny Ferreira, TTM coach, is optimistic about the prospects of avoiding the big chop, adding that the draw was a morale booster for the players amid the misfortune of the own goal scored.
“This is a stepping stone off the ground floor. We have to build now, after a lot of disruptions since October and November. I left the club, rightly or wrongly, but I am happy to be back to help fight to save the club,” said Ferreira. His lads lost 2-3 against Cape Town Spurs FC today’s league match in Cape Town and they are compelled to amend against MM Platinum in another away match on Saturday.
