Why Oswin Appollis was withdrawn before the start of Sunday’s game
Oswin Appollis was withdrawn from Polokwane City FC’s starting line-up minutes before kick-off on Sunday at the Old Peter Mokaba in Polokwane.
PLK City were playing The Bees, a Mpumalanga ABC Motsepe League team, in the Last 32 of the Nedbank Cup.
They released the line-up as per the norm about 30 minutes before the game. It was shared with the media. But just before kick-off, the Bafana Bafana winger was replaced by Bonginkosi Dlamini.
Appollis, who has been on the radar of Soweto giants Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs, did not play a part in the match.
OSWIN APPOLLIS’ SUBSTITUTION EXPLAINED
Indications are that the 23-year-old winger struggled with a knock and could not pass a late fitness test. Appollis sat out the team’s session on Friday as he struggled with the knock.
Meanwhile, PLK City coach Phuti Mohafe was pleased with the performances of his fringe players who featured in the match.
“The performance of those who came in – the rusty players – I can single out Bafana Nana; he came in, and he stabilised the right side,” Mohafe told journalists.
“And [Gift] Maswanganyi came in and tried his best. He got a yellow card, and we had to save him from getting a red card because he was always a step behind.
“We just wanted to be cautious and not end up playing with one man short.”
Mohafe will be hoping to hold onto Appollis with the transfer window set to close on Tuesday night. While Chiefs and Pirates had registered interest, none of the two giants have made headway in their pursuit.
In August, he was also linked to Algerian outfit MC Alger, but the move did not materialise. The former Pretoria Callies attacker still has a running contract with the club beyond the current season.
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