Marumo Gallants president Abram Sello says the decision to relocate the club to the Free State was a ‘masterstroke’. The decision was made following passionate pleas from the football-loving fans in the province who have been starved of topflight football for three years now.

The club from Limpopo will move their offices to Bloemfontein with immediate effect and will play all their home games in the province. The club has also decided to retain its name for the 2024/2025 PSL season.

Apart from relocation to the Free State, Marumo Gallants have also decided to re-appoint Englishman Dylan Kerr as head coach. It will be his third stint at the club.

The 57-year-old Kerr returned to England when the club was relegated two seasons ago. And he must not only retain the club’s status but finish in the top eight in the Premiership.

Sello says they have learnt their lessons in the past, and they are happy to be back in South Africa’s top-flight football.

“We are Marumo Gallants, we registered as such we are trading as such wherever we go and make collaboration, we will still remain as we are and also embrace whoever is collaborating with us with his own entity. So, the main thing is we don’t want to go into the wrong footing taking other companies, names and franchise,” says Sello.

Sello says their move to the Free State was motivated by several factors.

“The thirst for football there they want the club as they mentioned we are there they want to see football all these other fifteen PSL games coming there, international games coming there and on top, I think SAFA taking games there. Let’s revive the spirit of football that is the main thing and make sure that we deliver to our nation.”

Kerr says the club has retained 13 former Moroka Swallows players and will combine them with the 13 players who are still contracted by Marumo Gallants.

“Going into the top eight is a bonus, going into a cup semi-final will be a bonus, getting into a final would be fantastic we know every club has the same ideology that’s what they believe they want to do. There are 16 big clubs in the PSL they all want the same,”

Kerr believes he has unfinished business with the club after winning the Nedbank Cup with Marumo Gallants, and also finishing as runners-up in the same competition. But the Englishman is not putting the cart before the horses.

“Let’s focus on maintaining our status in the PSL because it’s a massive gamble for Marumo Gallants PTY to buy a status and finish bottom of the league or finish or finish in the play-offs, that’s how difficult this league is.”

The prayers of the passionate football fans in the Free State province have also been answered. Topflight football returns to the province for the first time since the sale of Bloemfontein Celtic in 2021.

And Obakeng Kgethe believes the club has done all the spadework to make sure it’s embraced by everyone in the province.

“We have the full support of the municipality which will include the free use of the facilities, we’ve also engaged with the local supporters who are very dominant as you know them and we have met with the executive council, and we also met the supporters themselves. Yes, we are getting the support and they are on board,” says Relationship stakeholder Obakeng Kgethe.

The club will use the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium as its home ground, while the big matches will be played at the Free State Stadium.