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why the fuss?

Linda Moreotsene

Linda Moreotsene

Those who claim that Platinum Stars are undeserving of their place in the Telkom Charity Cup finals are clearly not familiar with the rules of the competition.

So says Stars' publicist Putco Mafani. He was responding to an outcry, particularly from Bloemfontein Celtic fans who claimed to smell a rat after The Tycoons garnered 102 253 votes and stormed in to join Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates and Mamelodi Sundowns in the one-day challenge.

"It was not magic or witchcraft that brought us here; it was just good old-fashioned hard work that we qualified," he said.

Mafani assures doubters that those votes will translate into attendance on Saturday.

"People tend to forget that this is not a one man, one vote competition. We did what was necessary to mobilise support for our team," said Mafani.

Mafani certainly has a truckload of experience when it comes to marketing and brand matters - his work and track record with Kaizer Chiefs being a case in point.

"The matches should be intense, since the coaches will undoubtedly use this opportunity to have another look at their combinations.

"For us, we hope that all the noise and attention translate into more people coming to the game and us getting that all-important home-based support from now throughout the season," said Mafani.

Still on the Telkom Charity, PSL champions SuperSport United are not bothered that they did not manage to qualify.

"It is sad that we could not participate. We will continue to battle and try and build our brand," said United public relations officer David Skosana.

" I want to say, however, that we do support charity and actually have programmes we support consistently throughout the country."

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