Ba2cada Sounds Alarm on Siwelele FC’s Struggles: Inherited SuperSport Squad Not Cutting It
Durban – Ba2cada has sounded the alarm on Siwelele FC’s shaky start to the Betway Premiership season, warning that the squad largely inherited from SuperSport United is not up to snuff and putting coach Lehlohonolo Seema under do-or-die pressure ahead of a must-win clash with Magesi FC.
The popular radio and football pundit didn’t hold back in a candid take on Wednesday, September 17, 2025, after Siwelele FC’s latest stumble – a 2-0 defeat to Durban City that left them languishing in 11th spot with just four points from six games. Ba2cada pointed fingers at the “98% adopted” roster from SuperSport, a team that scraped survival on the final day last season under Gavin Hunt, who was eventually shown the door. “To be honest, the squad adopted from Supersport United as per their agreement is not good enough,” he said, recalling how even continentally experienced Hunt couldn’t turn them around. “The very same players couldn’t even win games for one of the experienced coaches in the continent Gavin Hunt, who was eventually fired… Now Siwelele adopt 98% of that team… why will we expect them to be different from that team that struggled last season?”
Siwelele FC, the rebranded SuperSport United after a controversial July 2025 takeover by a consortium led by Calvin Le John (son of Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie), stepped into the spotlight with big promises but a baggage-laden squad. The deal saw them inherit most of SuperSport’s players, coaches, and PSL status, but early results paint a grim picture: three losses, two draws, and one win (a 2-1 scrape over Orbit College). Fans in Pietermaritzburg and beyond are grumbling, with social media ablaze over missed chances and defensive lapses that echo SuperSport’s 2024 relegation flirtation.
From SuperSport Handover to Siwelele Struggles: The Squad Curse?
The handover was meant to be a fresh start. SuperSport United, after 30 years as a PSL mainstay, sold up in July 2025 to Siwelele Football Club (Pty) Ltd, a move Canal+ – SuperSport’s parent – pitched as streamlining ops amid financial squeezes. The new owners snapped up the squad wholesale, fulfilling contractual ties that locked in 98% of the roster – stars like Gamphani Lungu and Karim Kimvuidi stayed, but the core that limped to 12th last season tagged along too. SuperSport’s final-day miracle – a 1-0 win over Cape Town City to dodge the chop – masked deeper woes: 10 losses, defensive frailties, and Hunt’s sacking after a dismal run.
Ba2cada nailed it: why expect magic from the same faces? Siwelele’s technical bench – holdovers from Hunt’s era – hasn’t clicked either, with Seema inheriting a setup that “struggled till the last game ya league.” The coach, a former Chippa United boss with a rep for youth development, walked into a contractual minefield – little say on signings beyond four new faces like Wayde Lekay and Thabo Makhele in August. “The Technical Team on the bench is still the same… that struggled,” Ba2cada fumed, shifting blame from Seema: “I don’t think the blame should entirely be on the shoulders of Lehlohonolo Seema, for me he hasn’t had any say on his type of players he might like to have.”
Seema, 43 and fresh off a Nedbank Cup win with Chippa in 2024, cut a frustrated figure after the Durban City loss – a game where Siwelele dominated possession but fluffed chances, echoing SuperSport’s toothless attack last term. “We’re building, but results must come,” he told reporters post-match, his voice steady but eyes weary. With just one win in six – that gritty 2-1 over basement-dwellers Orbit College – Siwelele sit 11th, five points from the drop zone and staring down a relegation scrap before October’s dust settles.
Do or Die Against Magesi: Seema’s Make-or-Break Moment
Ba2cada didn’t sugarcoat the stakes: “Weekend game against Magesi is a do or die for coach Seema unfortunately… He loses it, ke bona mathata.” Magesi FC, the 2024 promotion darlings who’ve started solidly in 11th with seven points, roll into Harry Gwala Stadium on Saturday, September 20 – a clash that could define Seema’s honeymoon. Lose, and the vultures circle; win, and breathing room for tweaks.
Fans echo the worry. On X, #SiweleleStruggles trends with memes of Hunt’s ghost haunting the bench, while Pietermaritzburg faithful chant for fresh blood – perhaps dipping into the youth academy or splashing on a striker. The takeover, greenlit by PSL bosses despite fan fury over SuperSport’s erasure, locked in the squad to dodge mass releases – a pragmatic play, but one that’s bitten back hard. New owners, tied to McKenzie’s Patriotic Alliance, promised “revival,” but early signings like Lesotho international Thabo Makhele feel like band-aids on a bullet wound.
Seema’s no novice – his Chippa side punched above weight – but inheriting a “struggling” unit, as Ba2cada puts it, tests his mettle. “If we can remember well, Supersport survived relegation with the same squad ka last game of the season last season and that clearly shows there was a problem there,” the pundit reminded, a nod to the drama that saw Matsatsantsa snatch safety on the wire.
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