Saxon Rovers could not have asked for a more fitting fixture to make their ABC Motsepe League Second Division debut – a home tie against archrivals FN Rangers.
Rangers, a former champion in 2024, has in recent times been a mere shadow of themselves and is going through a rebuilding phase – and perhaps Saxons could not have asked for a better time to play Arreshaat Daniels’ Rangers.
Daniels’ counterpart Robert Pretorius and troops can certainly lay down a marker with a positive result and boost their confidence going forward.
However, even a weakened Rangers is not to be taken lightly as they are seasoned campaigners in this league and are fully aware of the bragging rights on offer – which comes with the three points of course – and both sets of players are fully aware of what is at stake.
And with Saxons and Rangers literally being meters apart, the rivalry runs deep. Rest assured there will be no love lost and sparks could certainly fly when the whistle blows at 15:00 at the Royal Road Sport Complex in Maitland on Saturday.
Needless to say, Saxons must now deliver the goods on the field after their big cash injection last season – and beating Rangers in their debut match, would certainly indicate they are ready for the big leagues – and to become Cape Town Tygerberg LFA’s new Kingpin at Royal Road.
Pretorius, who on a personal level is also making his debut in the league as a head coach, had this message to his rivals.
“It’s a game like any other in this division,” Pretorius pointed out to No Bones with Jones. “On their side, I have friends like Shakes, Jiggs, Kyle… always learning from them…
“So, I’m sure it will be an interesting encounter. They have beaten us convincingly in a pre-season friendly and the emotions in that game already have an indication of what’s to come. We will try to compete with them. Just recently, they were the best in this division by miles,” Pretorius added.
Meanwhile his counterpart and friend from Rangers, Daniels, would certainly want to cash in on this ‘away-home’ match for obvious reasons.
“Look, derbies are always unpredictable,” Daniels stated to No Bones with Jones. “And as cliche as it sounds, it really rewards the team that wants it the most, you know.
“The teams who turn up and are in the right frame of mind for such games. That said, we are looking forward to the match and I’m sure there will be lots of interest from the locals,” Daniels concluded.
Rest of the Motsepe League fixtures:
