{"id":48097,"date":"2024-04-22T16:04:42","date_gmt":"2024-04-22T16:04:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby"},"modified":"2024-04-22T16:32:53","modified_gmt":"2024-04-22T16:32:53","slug":"venue-headache-for-big-derby","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby","title":{"rendered":"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #ff6600\"><strong>Africa-Press &#8211; Eswatini. <\/strong><\/span><b>Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue.<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Both venues, in Mavuso Sports Centre and Somhlolo National Stadium, that have a capacity to host the massive clash currently closed for upgrades. The clash is between arch-rivals Mbabane Swallows and Mbabane Highlanders. Highlanders are expected to host fellow giants Swallows for their second round match of the 2023\/24 MTN Premier League season in round 24 next weekend. However, latest reports suggest that the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) office is facing a dilemma in finding a suitable venue. While it is Highlanders\u2019 game, the PLE does have a say, especially in the last three fixtures of the season, as per the rules.<\/p>\n<p>PLE Football Manager Pat Vilakati confirmed that nothing had been finalised as yet. \u201cThe venue is not final as yet,\u201d Vilakati said. Meanwhile, Mavuso is also currently out of bounds. Du-Van Developers were said to be awarded the tender for the alterations of the Mavuso Trade and Exhibition Centre and the Sports Centre\u2019s VVIP Box. The Eswatini Investment Promotion Authority (EIPA) disclosed that Du-Van Developers\u2019 proposed contract price was E5 706 010.69 as stated in the intention to award the tender released in February. EIPA earlier confirmed that construction works commenced, and periods of a shutdown were to be expected.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, Ministry of Sports, Culture and Youth Affairs Communications Officer Sibongiseni Zondi said no requests were made to secure Somhlolo National Stadium. The national stadium is owned by government. He was responding to a questionnaire with regards to Somhlolo National Stadium being requested as a possible venue. \u201cOur office has not received a request as yet,\u201d Zondi said. During the titanic clash, Swallows would be aiming to continue their fine for, while Highlanders would want to avenge the defeat in a cup match. The Caleb Ngwenya-led team crushed Bull\u2019s dream of tasting success in the 2023\/24 Ingwenyama Cup sponsored by Sincephetelo Motor Vehicle Accident Fund (SMVAF) tournament by thrashing them in the semi-final.<\/p>\n<p>A packed Somhlolo National Stadium witnessed the one-sided encounter which saw Swallows strike three unanswered goals past hapless Highlanders shotstopper Khanyakwezwe Shabalala. Since losing to forces side Green Mamba at the start of October last year, Swallows have not suffered a single defeat in the league. They are in stunning form going into the mouth-watering clash. Meanwhile, the host team Highlanders have suffered six defeats, with Young Buffaloes adding to their woes with a 4-1 thrashing, last Saturday. Highlanders are 11 points behind log leaders and rivals Swallows after being placed in sixth spot the past weekend. The giants were tied to a 1-all draw in their last league match on December 10, 2023.<\/p>\n<p>Highlanders Public Relations Officer (PRO) Kenneth Dlamini said they were yet to meet to plan the eagerly-anticipated match. \u201cThe host venue has not been decided as we are facing Swallows after one game. However, the decision would be known soon,\u201d Dlamini said.<\/p>\n<p><strong>For More News And Analysis About <a href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\">Eswatini<\/a> Follow <a href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/\">Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Africa-Press &#8211; Eswatini. Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue. Both venues, in Mavuso Sports Centre and Somhlolo National Stadium, that have a capacity to host the massive clash currently closed for upgrades. The clash is between arch-rivals Mbabane Swallows and Mbabane Highlanders. Highlanders are [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":48095,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,17],"tags":[234,248,249],"class_list":["post-48097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-sport","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-eswatini","tag-eswatini"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.1 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY - Eswatini<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue. Both venu ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue. Both venu ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Eswatini\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-04-22T16:04:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-04-22T16:32:53+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-22T16:04:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-04-22T16:32:53+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby\"},\"wordCount\":501,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Eswatini\",\"Eswatini\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"sport\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby\",\"name\":\"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY - Eswatini\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-04-22T16:04:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-04-22T16:32:53+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"description\":\"Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue. Both venu ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg\",\"width\":1600,\"height\":900,\"caption\":\"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/\",\"name\":\"Eswatini\",\"description\":\"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"cfeditoren\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY - Eswatini","description":"Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue. Both venu ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY","og_description":"Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue. Both venu ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby","og_site_name":"Eswatini","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa","article_published_time":"2024-04-22T16:04:42+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-04-22T16:32:53+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1600,"height":900,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby"},"author":{"name":"cfeditoren","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"headline":"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY","datePublished":"2024-04-22T16:04:42+00:00","dateModified":"2024-04-22T16:32:53+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby"},"wordCount":501,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg","keywords":["Africa Press","Africa Press-Eswatini","Eswatini"],"articleSection":["all news","sport"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby","name":"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY - Eswatini","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg","datePublished":"2024-04-22T16:04:42+00:00","dateModified":"2024-04-22T16:32:53+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb"},"description":"Ahead of Eswatini\u2019s biggest match next week, there is still uncertainty with regard to the host venue. Both venu ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/sites\/33\/2024\/04\/sm_1713790849.737154.jpg","width":1600,"height":900,"caption":"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/all-news\/venue-headache-for-big-derby#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"VENUE HEADACHE FOR BIG DERBY"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/","name":"Eswatini","description":"Just another Africa News Agency Sites site","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb","name":"cfeditoren","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7417380fa9e23b5c57fdbfdaf3fdf92ee478f759a084addda5faa3732853e74a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"cfeditoren"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48097"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48097\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48095"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/eswatini\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}