There will be no prizes for guessing which DStv Premiership club averaged the most points per game in the 2023 calendar year, but the rest of the table makes for some interesting reading.
Mamelodi Sundowns collected their sixth successive domestic league title in May and continued their hot form into the new campaign.
They earned 74 from a possible 90 points in the calendar year, winning 22 league games to go with eight draws, for an average of 2,47 points per match, far and away the best in the league.
That does not include the three points they are likely to get from their forfeited fixture with Moroka Swallows, as that determination has yet to be made by the PSL DC.
Orlando Pirates were next best as they averaged 1,88 points, boosted by a superb second half of the 2022/23 season in which they outscored everybody in the league – Sundowns included.
That form took a dip in the second half of the year, but they are still the number two club in 2023.
Cape Town City and SuperSport United played more league fixtures in the calendar year than any other sides, 33 in all. They are also the next two on our list.
City averaged 1,76 points per game and SuperSport took home 1,70. They will both look to build on those strong returns as they battle for second place in the league this season.
So too Stellenbosch FC, who are number five on the average points in 2023 table. They took home 1,65 from their 31 matches.
Number six is a club in real trouble, Swallows, who averaged a very healthy 1,48, followed by Sekhukhune United (1,44).
Coming in as the eighth best DStv Premiership side in 2023 are Kaizer Chiefs (1,38), who will be desperately disappointed by their return, which was only boosted in the closing weeks of the year.
But for 10 points from a possible 12 to close 2023 and they would have been further down the list.
Four teams have averaged less than a point a game in the past 12 months. Cape Town Spurs could only muster four from a possible 48 (0,25) per game after 16 matches following their promotion.
Richards Bay (0,63) need some serious improvement in the second half of the current campaign after a poor year, while Chippa United hover just above them on 0,91.
The final side under one point per game is relegated Marumo Gallants, who were in a decent position at the start of 2023 but could only muster 0,94 points per game after that.
