Mamelodi Sundowns unseats Highlands Park as GDL champ
After two years of dominance in the u19 division of the Gauteng Development League (GDL) by Highlands Park, the Lions of the North have been unseated as the GDL champions by Mamelodi Sundowns, who secured the title on the last weekend of the season.
As the league headed towards its conclusion, Highlands Park and the Brazilians were in a fierce competition for the GDL crown. It was a fascinating season. At one point during the second round of matches, five teams appeared to be in contention for the title, with SuperSport United, Randburg, and Remember Elite Sport Academy (RESA) all challenging at the top.
Kaizer Chiefs, who had struggled in mid-table for most of their campaign, enduring a sub-standard season by their high standards, finished on a high, passing SuperSport United to claim fifth place.
Ahead of the weekend’s matches, Highlands Park and Park were level on 77 points. However, Bafana Ba Style had a better goal difference than Highlands Park. The previous weekend, the University of Pretoria (Tuks) had shaken up the title race when they shocked Highlands Park, which, effectively, all but ended the chances of a three-peat by the Lions of the North.
On Saturday, Highlands Park, nonetheless, had a chance to make history with a third consecutive title, but they didn’t control their own destiny. With their superior goal difference, Mamelodi Sundowns were in the driver’s seat.
For Sundowns’ coach Kristopher Bergman, it was a chance to claim silverware for the first time since joining the Chorkloop-based club in January.
Additionally, Sundowns had a shot at a fourth GDL title in 2025, with their u13, u15, and u17 teams having won their divisions the previous weekend. Only Kaizer Chiefs kept Sundowns from making a clean sweep of the titles, with Chiefs claiming the u14 crown.
Highlands Park took on a struggling School of Excellence side in their final game. School of Excellence had been through a trying campaign and sat 15th in the standings, way below their usual standard, which has usually seen them at the upper end of the table.
Highlands Park did what they could do, scoring a 1-0 win, but Mamelodi Sundowns secured the title in style, cruising to a 3-0 win over Panorama in Pretoria to seal the deal.
Also on Saturday, Rockefvs played to a 2-2 draw with SuperSport United. TS Galaxy scored a 2-0 victory over the East Rand Athletic Club, and Kathorus Hyper Academy took down Tuks 2-0.
With the schedule completed, East Rand Athletic and Elspark United Academy will be relegated to the second tier of the GDL for next season, while the Prestige Football Academy returns to the GDL after being demoted to the Gauteng Development League – Promotional League in 2023. They’ll be joined in the GDL by Future of Africa.
RESULTS
Saturday, 8 November
SuperSport United 2-2 Rockefvs
TS Galaxy 2-0 East Rand Athletic
Kathorus 2-0 Tuks
Highlands Park 1-0 School of Excellence
Mamelodi Sundowns 3-0 Panorama
