A quick inspection of the Kutloanong and West end grounds revealed the shocking levels of damage inflicted on the infrastructure at these venues.
THE LOCAL Football Association (LFA) is scrambling to comply with Safa’s directive on observing Covid-19 safety rules at the three designated venues in the Sol Plaatje district.
The LFA last week was delighted to announce the resumption of amateur football fixtures in the local district in keeping with a national directive issued by the SA Football Association which set measures to comply with Covid-19 safety regulations.
For the purposes of complying with the biosafety bubble rules which restrict general public access and prevent non-playing staff from attending matches, the LFA designated the West End Club grounds, the Galeshewe artificial turf as well as Kutlwanong Stadium as their play grounds of choice. These venues were earmarked to host LFA games as of March 1 this year.
However, a quick inspection of the Kutloanong and West end grounds revealed the shocking levels of damage inflicted on the infrastructure at these venues. To start with, the grass at both sites has not been trimmed in a very long while. Deep dongas and footpaths criss-cross the playing A and B fields at Kutloanong.
The clubhouse, or what remains of it, bears dated graffiti. The structure is minus its roof, doors, windows and assorted fittings on the inside.
Steel cables hang dangerously from some of the floodlights inside the premises and on the outside, the cement perimeter fence has gaping holes in places.
At the West End Club the “ticketing box” at the entrance has been completely destroyed by those scavenging for iron and steel while the playing surface could do with a quick trim fix. The state of these grounds means that the LFA in truth has only the Galeshewe artificial available to serve as its biosafe bubble venue.
Seabata Makhele, the LFA chairperson spoke about the work that has been done as well as the work still to do at the venues. “We scraped the grounds at West End. We still must remove the rubble and erect the poles. Kutloanong has a lease held by Vuduka (a non-profit sports organisation).
“We met (Vuduka) who have a long lease on the premises to discuss a joint usage agreement. We still have to scrape the main pitch including the disused netball pitches. We will have to close the gaps in the fence. All this must happen before next month,” Makhele told the DFA.
