Premier Soccer League (PSL) chief executive officer Mato Madlala says players won’t be tested for the coronavirus if play does resume after the 21-day national lockdown.

With all football in South Africa suspended, the country is currently under a 21-day lockdown which aims to prevent the increasing number of people infected by Covid-19.

Speaking to Independent Media, Madlala insisted that the league will stick to the governments regulations if the PSL does resume after the 21-day national lockdown.

‘We can’t create our own regulations as football. We will follow the regulations of the country. What are they saying? You know the regulations [you only get tested when you show coronavirus symptoms]. We can’t fight against them. We can’t change the regulations. All we are saying as the PSL is that we will comply with the regulations of the country. We are not above regulations as football. That must be clear,’ said the seasoned football administrator.

‘If the regulations are making it possible for us to play, then we will continue. If the regulations at that time are making it impossible for us to play, we won’t play. We won’t kick a football if it means we are not complying with regulations. That’s key.

‘We now have two committees. A task team that is responsible for looking after medical and security sectors because those two are key. We have to know what to follow medically in order for games to take place behind closed doors. The minister of sports and recreation gave us permission [for playing behind closed doors] on condition that we comply,’ she explained.

‘That’s the condition that underlines whether the games will take place or not. We had planned meetings before the national lockdown with the security and medical task committee. We were supposed to have met with the security task team a day after the President [Cyril Ramaphosa] announced the lockdown. But it was going to depend on the regulations on that time if they allow us. We’ve been given a mandate by our members that they want the league finished.

‘We will now review the new regulations that have been put in place. We will look at the dos and don’ts from the Department of Health. From there we will see what we need to implement or change, but still play behind closed doors. It looks like behind closed doors is the way to go for now. We will meet and discuss the way forward with the health department because we want to be ready by the time we feel we can go back to the field of play. We will look at the regulations and comply with them.

‘At the moment they are still very supportive. They are still on our side. They want us to comply with regulations. There’s nothing to worry about at the moment,’ Madlala concluded.