Royal AM owner Shauwn Mkhize (Press Association)
- Royal AM’s flamboyant owner Shauwn Mkhize pleaded the fifth when it came to explaining her team’s latest antics.
- Her son, the club chairperson Andile Mpisane, walked into the Chatsworth Stadium field with an envelope with money after they beat Maritzburg United.
- Despite the off-field drama, the club has made a good start to the DStv Premiership where they are third on the log.
Flamboyant Royal AM owner Shauwn Mkhize tried to avoid her latest controversy dogging her Premier Soccer League club.
The Durban-based entrepreneur/socialite found her team in the news after her son Andile Mpisane brought an envelope full of cash onto the field after Royal AM dramatically beat Maritzburg United 2-1 in a DStv Premiership match in Chatsworth over the weekend.
The action attracted plenty of social media attention, but Mkhize said she’ll always do what she feels is right and what she feels is good.
“I’m not going to talk about what happened over the weekend. I’m only going to talk about what has happen just now,” Mkhize said.
“This is a good gesture. What happened over the weekend, happened. Royal AM has always had its problems and there will always be problems.
“I can never change how people think, but I can always do what I think is right and what I feel good about.
“It makes me feel better, but I’m not pompous. Sometimes, one feels that God has a time where he shows off and I think he’s doing so now.”
Mkhize, who controversially brought the status of Bloemfontein Celtic on the eve of the 2021/22 season, said unity is the common goal that is keeping the club together.
While the club is making news for all the wrong reasons off the field, they’re third on the log with 12 points from their six matches.
Those points have come from four consecutive wins, including a 4-1 away win against Kaizer Chiefs that saw club members, who had an armed guard with them, celebrating wildly.
“That doesn’t mean that is how things are going to be. We’ll still take one game at a time, but we’re excited at being third on the log.
“It started off as four goals, now it’s four wins in a row, so it’s exciting. I instil focus on my boys and I always tell them that the game isn’t over until the last whistle.
“Unity is what has pulled us through because if you look at the coach and the players, we have that one united front. We win together, we lose together.”
With the club making a splash, it remains to be seen whether their dive into the DStv Premiership waters will be deep and sustained.
With 24 matches left, they’re 20 points away from what’s generally the safety mark of 32 points in the 16-team league.
Mkhize said she doesn’t want the club to be compared to anyone and they’re operating on their own wavelength.
“I feel bad when we’re compared. We are Royal AM and we want to remain as Royal AM. We don’t want any comparison,” Mkhize said.
“There is no mandate and we just want to remain as Royal AM. We just want to stay in the top flight and there is no pressure.
“Ours is a three-year plan and we’ll stick to it.”
