AmaZulu Football Club defender Sibusiso Mabiliso has become the latest player in the Premier Soccer League (PSL) to be suspended by his club for gender-based violence (GBV), Sunday World has reliably learnt.
The Durban-based football club has, however, tried to keep the matter under the carpet in a bid to protect its image and Mabiliso’s reputation.
Reasons advanced by AmaZulu communication desk for Mabiliso’s continued absence from training and during march days are that he is out recuperating from an undisclosed injury.
However, Sunday World has it on good authority that the allegations reached the club’s attention that Mabiliso was turning his baby-mama into a punching bag at their rented flat.
Excessive drinking
A source said: “His assault on the poor lady has been going on for some time. Ever since he returned from a spell at Kaizer Chiefs at the beginning of the season, he has not been okay up his head.
“The frustration of failing to crack the starting line-up drove him mad, to the point that he started drinking excessively, and would take out his anger on his baby-mama.
“The lady couldn’t take it anymore and reported him to the club for protection.”
With their backs against the wall, AmaZulu could not let the serious allegations go on without being investigated.
Upon verifying the allegations, the club held an internal investigation and after being satisfied with its findings, it decided to suspend Mabiliso from all club’s activities, according to another source.
Future at AmaZulu hangs by a thread
“Remember how AmaZulu take seriously the GBV issues, as they fired public relations officer Phumlani Dube in November last year for assault allegations on a female colleague,” said the source.
“Mabiliso has since been removed from the players and technical team WhatsApp groups as a result of his misconduct. At this stage, his future at the club hangs by a thread because he’s not even playing regularly.”
Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates star Thembinkosi Lorch set tongues wagging when he was arrested in 2022 and later found guilty by the Randburg magistrate’s court in June 2023 for assaulting his girlfriend Fundiswa Mathithibala.
Lorch was handed a suspended jail sentence and fined R100 000 for assaulting Mathithibala. He was also declared unfit to possess a firearm under the Firearms Control Act.
During trial, state prosecutor Michele Hart argued that the medical evidence corroborated the evidence of the complainant.
“The accused did not have any injuries, which meant that he was the aggressor,” Hart argued in court.
“The accused and his witness did not create a good impression in court and appeared to be not credible witnesses.”
