Sekhukhune United coach Brandon Truter has cast his eyes on the CAF Confederation Cup next season, with the club holding a huge advantage.
Truter’s side find themselves in a bit of a catch-22 ahead of their game against Orlando Pirates on Saturday, as Sekhukhune will play in the CAF Confederations Cup next season, should the Buccaneers secure the CAF Champions League spot.
Babina Noko would qualify via their place in the Nedbank Cup final, even if they would lose to the same Pirates on 27 May at Loftus Stadium.
Pirates, who beat Kaizer Chiefs in the Ke Yona Cup semi-final this past weekend, lie second in the league table with 50 points after 28 matches, two points ahead of third-placed SuperSport United, six ahead of Chiefs.
Chiefs can mathematically still catch Pirates, but the latter would have to lose the next two matches – against Sekhukhune and AmaZulu, respectively – and Amakhosi would have to overturn a 14-goals goal difference in the process.
“We have Pirates in the league, so yeah, excitement, first for the club as well,” said Truter.
“I think also, if Pirates finish second, it takes us to Africa [even if we lose the Nedbank Cup final], so there is still a lot to play for.
“In terms of us, we have to refocus and focus on the league. We are in the top eight but it’s [not] secured yet. It’s about refocusing now and looking forward to our next league game.”
Another route for Sekhukhune to play in Africa would be if Marumo Gallants would win this season’s CAF Confederation Cup and Pirates finish in second place in the DStv Premiership.
In this case, Sekhukhune would qualify for Confed Cup as Nedbank Cup representatives (even if they lose to Pirates in the Ke Yona Cup final), similar to what happened to Gallants last season when they lost in the same cup to Mamelodi Sundowns.
This situation, though, would end SuperSport’s hopes of going to Africa after finishing in third place in the league, as then Sundowns and Pirates would go into the CAFCL and Gallants and Sekhukhune would go into the CAFCC.
Gallants are currently in the semi-finals of the CAF second tier club competition and will face Young Africans of Tanzania in the two-legged tie, starting with the first leg at Benjamin Mkapa National Stadium in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday.
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South Africa can only have a maximum of four teams in the CAF inter-club competitions, two in the CAF Champions League and two in the CAF Confederation Cup, as South Africa has higher rankings in CAF coefficient. Unlike UEFA, the winner of the Confederation Cup does not automatically qualify for next season’s CAF Champions League.
