Opinion Sport

[WATCH] Like fine wine: Stellies veteran Van Rooyen can inspire academy players

Sizwe Mbebe|Published

Leader: Deano van Rooyen, left

Deano Van Rooyen has become the latest of Stellenbosch’s homegrown talents to reach a milestone for the club.

The 26-year-old has been a consistent feature for the club since it was founded back in 2016.

Now he has clocked a record 77th PSL Premiership appearances for the club in Saturday’s 1-0 defeat against Sekhukhune United, beating Marc van Heerden’s previous record of 76.

Overall the recently-departed Rafiq de Goede is the leader with 114 matches in all competitions.

Van Rooyen is not far behind with 109 and set to break that record too with 13 league matches and the Nedbank Cup still to be played.

Surpassed: Marc van Heerden

The young man from the original Stellies group when everything started in 2016 to now becoming one of the senior members of the team.

He tells the Daily Voice: “It’s a good feeling to break the record.

“This means alot to me, especially as a local boy who many other youngsters now look up to.”

Stellies made some major changes to their squad before the start of the season, bringing in no fewer than six players.

They sold Van Rooyen’s cousin Ashley du Preez and Zitha Kwinika to Kaizer Chiefs in what could be described as the club’s first blockbuster transfer. The duo were just starting to make a reputation in the national team conversations.

Ashley Du Preez

They also let go of their experienced campaigners such as midfielder Granwald Scott, striker Waseem Isaacs and defenders Sibusiso Mthethwa, Marc van Heerden and Robyn Johannes to make way for fresh blood.

With Mthethwa and Johannes gone, De Goede took on a more senior role, wearing the captain’s armband when goalkeeper Lee Langeveldt was not on the pitch. But he’s gone now.

It looked like a rebuild, meeting the club’s vision of blending in the club’s homegrown talent with the new signings.

Lee-Raoul Langeveldt

They started the season on a promising note mixing it up with the top sides in the early stages of the season.

Things haven’t quite worked out as planned since they had to change venues to host Kaizer Chiefs in early October.

The reason the venue was changed was because of the chaos caused by Amakhosi fans when the two teams clashed in the MTN8 at the Danie Craven Stadium two months before that.

Stellies ended up losing that league match 3-1 at the alternate venue DHL Stadium, setting up a forgettable run that has seen them go winless in the seven matches since.

They have only managed to collect three points from those matches and as a result occupy a concerning 13th place after 17 matches.

They are tied on 17 points with the two teams below them, Swallows in 14th and Maritzburg who are 15th. Very important to note is that there are only just three points separating this group from the bottom side Maruno Gallants.

In rough waters: Pirates

This Sunday’s clash away at Orlando Pirates is therefore very important, not just because it’s against a Soweto giant but because it could define the second half of the campaign for the Winelands ouens.

They need to be in better company, among the top eight finishers at least, which is very possible because of the league’s inconsistencies.

Stellies can find motivation in the fact that they have yet to win against the Buccaneers at Orlando Stadium.

Their victory would also set the scene for an interesting clash against local neighbours Cape Town City, who occupy that eighth currently, the weekend after.

They need to be in a secure position when the Nedbank Cup last 32 matches kick off next month.

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