Johnson tries to explain Kaizer Chiefs’ shambolic honour for Khune

Fixing potholes and attending political rallies were among excuses Kaizer Chiefs interim coach Cavin Johnson gave on why supporters did not turn up to celebrate Itumeleng Khune when he was honoured at Kaizer Chiefs' match against Polokwane City.

The club had haphazardly announced on Thursday it would use its penultimate 2023-24 DStv Premiership match — drawn 1-1 at FNB Stadium on Saturday — to celebrate Khune's 25 years at the club, but few fans bothered to pitch up for the occasion.

After the appalling performances the eighth-placed, ailing one-time Soweto giants have delivered, the fans seemed to have every right to vote with their feet, showing their displeasure at Amakhosi going a ninth season without a trophy.

Youth product Khune, who won nine trophies with Chiefs in his productive first 11 years with the senior team, would surely have liked to have been celebrated in better fashion than what happened on Saturday.

Chiefs produced another dull draw as Khune replaced Bruce Bvuma for the final 15 minutes — probably the last appearance for the 36-year-old decorated former Bafana Bafana goalkeeper, though clarity is yet to be given on his future at Amakhosi.

Johnson thought it was perhaps understandable fans stayed away, saying they had too much on their plates, especially with the looming May 29 national elections just under a fortnight away.

“I think when you look back and you look at what we've been doing, I think we're still one of the teams in the PSL with the most supporters in any one game. We expected to have more [but] today we didn't,” Johnson said.

“But you look back and you look at what's happening around the country, there's a lot, [there's] elections. 

“People are saying, 'Hey let me go and [vote] so that I can get Sassa [government grant] money, or let me go here to see what they are doing. Are they going to burn or fix our roads?' 

“We're also faced with a lot of that competition [other activities], if I may say, within our sports. If we never had that, I'm sure if they had found that 'Itu' [Khune] was being honoured our supporters would have been here much more.

“But now they've got to weigh their options. Are they going to close the pothole or must I go watch Kaizer Chiefs on a Saturday? [They're saying], 'I want to close the pothole, because that's why we're having problems in our communities'.

“That for me is a lot. They've got to think about all those things. Our supporters are also very important to us but, like we say, today they never came out in their numbers. I know for a fact wherever we go we always have the most supporters.”

The reality, though, is Chiefs have been punching way below their weight, not just this season but in almost all of the past eight seasons and support for the club has been dwindling, especially at home.

Johnson agrees that to ignite Chiefs' the club has to perform far better. Saturday's draw left Chiefs with a task of winning their final match of the season against Cape Town Spurs at Athlone Stadium on Saturday to be assured eighth spot.

“I think the reignition [of supporters] will happen. [But] I think it's three games now that we haven't won a game. That [winning] is what our people want, they want us to score goals and win games — we're not doing that.

“Hopefully in Cape Town, where we always have a good following — in fact I think we have one of the best followings in Cape Town and Durban — we will have good support and score goals and end the season on a very high note.”