26 August 2019, by: Hansley Jugar

PSL TALISMAN – WHO IS THE KEY MAN FOR EACH CLUB?

Talisman (/ˈtalɪzmən/) noun: A person regarded as representing and inspiring a particular group of people.

Soccer is a team sport, and many coaches will tell you that no one player is above the group. There can be no denying that even within this type of unit, some players tend to shine and bring the best out of their teammates. Lionel Messi at Barcelona and Roy Keane at Manchester United are two examples of players that are/were key figures on their teams.

In this regard, I decided to try and find who the talismans on each of the ABSA Premiership teams are based on three measures (Stellenbosch FC excluded due to lack of stats): Minutes played, Points per game and Attacking contributions. The last measure might skew the results towards more attacking players but as is often the case, these are the players that really make their teams tick.

Goalkeepers tend to play the most minutes on their respective teams and five players proved this to be true. Richard Ofori and Ronwen Williams were the only two players to play every minute of the 2018/2019 season.

Luckyboy Mokoena of Highlands Park completed the most minutes of any outfield player. There were only two ‘attacking’ players to complete the most minutes on their teams perhaps highlighting how attacking players are given more credit for doing less.

Points Per Game (Minimum 1500 minutes played)

This is where things get interesting. Influential players inspire those around them, and this usually translates to positive results on the pitch. Thapelo Morena achieved a miraculous 2.4 points per game, the most by any player in the league. Lebohang Maboe and Gaston Sirino were the only other players to average more than 2 points per game of (players to play more than 1500 minutes).

None of the players that played the most minutes on their teams have also acquired the most points per game but, Lebohang Maboe, Daniel Cardoso, Khama Billiat, Innocent Maela, Thamsanqa Mkhize, Taariq Fielies, Zitha Macheke, Lantshene Phalane, Peter Shalulile and Luckyboy Mokoena all appear in the top 3 of their teams in both categories.

A last, and contentious measure used was the players’ attacking contributions. Goals win games and at the end of the day, a player that comes up with the goods on the attacking end will always drive their team. Aubrey Modiba had a phenomenal season and contributed in 15 games. Deon Hotto and Mwape Musonda also had great seasons and deserve special praise.

Our picture is also enhanced greatly by adding the attacking numbers into the equation. Lebohang Maboe appears in all 3 categories and even though he has only been at Sundowns for one season, he has proven to be their main man.

And here we have the final and surprising talisman table. Attacking players dominate, and only 3 players appeared across all 3 categories on their teams. Patrick Tingyemb, Zitha Macheke and Fortune Makaringe were all integral parts of their teams and it will be interesting to see how their respective departures affect their former clubs.

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