01 May 2023

Lobatse Premier League giants Extension Gunners FC will not be playing in the country’s top tier football campaign next season after suffering relegation.

The Peleng giants fondly called Mapantsola by their legion of fans were bundled out of the league campaign after a heartbreaking one all draw with Mogoditshane Fighters FC in a fast-paced fixture at the Molepolole Sports Complex on Saturday.

For a team that needed a victory at all cost to stand any chance of  avoiding the axe, Gunners did not do enough to win the clash.

Fighters’ midfielder Othusegile Botsetswe orchestrated all the damage at death, heading home in referees optional time to cancel out Omphile Vissagie’s lead and denying Gunners victory.

Gunners needed the maximum points from their remaining five games and pray their relegation candidates slump to defeat.
It was however not the case as Holy Ghost shocked Sua Flamingoes to grab 26 points.

This meant with only four games left an unlikely victory for Gunners, who are sitting at 13 points could earn them 25 points.

Gunners are left with a mammoth task of last round fixtures against Orapa United, Township Rollers, Police XI and BDF XI.

Their demotion to the national first division south campaign had been a slow burn of disappointment to its hordes of die-hard fans for the past years now.

At the centre of the rot had been maladministration and instability in the technical bench.

Gunners slumped to a record number of 17 defeats and seven draws this season, which could have been their worst since the super league started in the late 70s.

In other Botswana Premier League fixtures, Orapa United compounded Prisons XI woes with a 4-0 drubbing.

Thabo Metlhayotlhe and Tumisang Pule were on target as BDF XI halted Jwaneng Galaxy title bid with a shocking 2-1 victory.

In another mid table clash Security Systems beat Eleven Angels 2-0 while Police scalped Morupule 1-0. ENDS