Cape Town Spurs’ fight to remain in the professional ranks has officially come to an end after their complaint against Pretoria Callies and Kruger United FC was dismissed with costs by arbitrator Advocate Roseline Nyman SC.
The ruling, delivered on 23 June 2025, puts to bed the Urban Warriors’ attempt to overturn relegation and contest the eligibility of players fielded by their rivals.
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At the centre of the dispute were complaints about the registration of players Sibusiso Kumalo (Pretoria Callies) and Osborne Maluleke (Kruger United), whom Spurs argued did not possess valid clearance certificates. According to court documents, the players’ contracts with Marumo Gallants had expired, and the new entity, Leruma United, should have been the ones to issue those certificates — not Gallants.
Court documents seen by the Siya crew, along with confirmation from one of the legal representatives of the respondents, verify that the matter has been settled and that Spurs have formally withdrawn their application to the High Court.
In her official ruling, Advocate Nyman concluded that only Leruma United, not Marumo Gallants, had the legal standing to issue valid clearance certificates for the players in question.
“The complaint is dismissed with costs,” Nyman wrote in her arbitration award, finalising the case.
This legal decision stems from Spurs’ claims that several of their relegation-threatened opponents fielded improperly registered players during the final stretch of the 2024/25 season.
One key example was the Urban Warriors’ final game of the campaign, played under protest against Durban City, where they argued that striker Saziso Magawana was ineligible to play.
Initially submitted to the PSL’s Dispute Resolution Chamber (DRC), the case was later escalated to SAFA arbitration due to the tight deadline imposed by the promotion and relegation play-offs, which must conclude by the end of the month as initially planned.
Spurs had hoped that a successful ruling would force the league to revisit relegation standings and possibly reinstate them to the Championship while demoting teams found guilty of fielding ineligible players.
Following the arbitrator’s dismissal, Spurs filed papers at the High Court in a last-ditch effort to challenge the ruling.
However, documents reviewed by the Siya crew confirm that the club has since withdrawn the application, signalling an acceptance of the arbitration outcome.
This was further verified by one of the respondents’ legal representatives, who confirmed to the Siya crew that Spurs were no longer pursuing the matter in court.
The move allows the league and all involved parties to proceed without legal uncertainty.
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The outcome brings relief to the PSL, which faced the risk of a messy, court-mandated reshuffle of standings and promotion outcomes had Spurs succeeded in their legal bid.
With the issue resolved, Durban City’s promotion to the Betway Premiership is now unchallenged, while Orbit College, Casric Stars, and Cape Town City continue to battle it out in the play-offs for a spot in the top flight.
