Casric Stars eager for play-off redemption, says assistant coach Thabo Nthethe

Nthethe's charges ended the recently completed Motsepe Foundation Championship in third place behind Orbit College and league winners Durban City.

They kick off the play-offs away to the Mswenko boys at Olympia Park Stadium on Wednesday, ahead of taking on Cape Town City next week, in the first of four round-robin games to determine who secures their place in the Betway Premiership for next season.

Stars were previously in the play-offs in the 2022/23 season but were unsuccessful in that promotion attempt.

"The boys are excited to be a part of the playoffs this season," Nthethe said on IOL.

"We are where we are because we want promotion. This is our opportunity to showcase ourselves, and if we win the mini tournament, we'll go through. It's another chance."

Nthethe added: "The boys did well this season, but we should've ended the campaign further up the table," he continued.

"We've been doing our best to keep the players motivated because the league took time to finalize things due to the case. We tried to keep the players active and fresh by giving them off days to recover ahead of the tournament, but now we're ready."