Experienced winger Tabiso Mpame has cut ties with Motsepe Foundation Championship side Casric Stars just six games into the new season.
Mpame joined Casric in July 2023 after parting ways with Cape Town Spurs FC, having helped the Cape side gain promotion to the SA top-flight in the 2022/23 season.
In the last term, Mpame featured in 10 games for the Mpumalanga club, starting in one game and coming in as a substitute in the other nine matches.
Casric finished in position seven on the Motsepe Foundation Championship table with 43 points after 30 games last season. In those 30 matches, the side managed to secure 11 wins, draw 10, and lose nine in the process.
WHY TABISO MPAME TERMINATED HIS CONTRACT WITH CASRIC STARS
In an interview with FARPost, Mpame didn’t beat around the bush spilling beans on what really transpired leading to his decision to terminate his contract with Casric.
The issue between the PSL team from Kwa-Mhlanga and Mpame began in January of this year when he had to return to Cape Town to attend to his ill father.
The club suspected Mpame of misconduct, speculating that he was practising with another team, whereas he was still taking care of his father as there was nobody who will nurse him. However, the player ultimately submitted a medical report to the club as proof of his innocence.
Upon his arrival at the club back in March 2024, Casric decided to demote the talented winger to practice with the reserve team until it reached a point where he started training alone.
As a result, Mpame never played for the first team since the resumption of the Motsepe Foundation Championship new campaign.
“Obviously, as a professional player, you don’t want to be in a place where you’re terminating your contract and all that, especially with this high unemployment rate in South Africa,” Mpame told this publication.
“So, after serious consideration with my family and my girlfriend, I realised that this has been going on for so long and is draining and frustrating due to the level of unprofessionalism within the team and how they handle the situations we have been facing. It was advisable for me to let go of the contract.
“In football, mental strength and the environment are very important. If the environment doesn’t serve you as you wish, there’s no way that you can perform and be yourself as well.”
FROM BAD TO WORSE FOR TABISO MPAME AT CASRIC STARS
Things went from bad to worse when the player was hijacked at Hatfield Plaza [in Pretoria] underground parking while he was washing his car on September 17, 2024. Luckily, the car was found after the player reported the incident to the police.
When the player reported the matter to the club, the response he got from the team management was that the incident happened outside of work and he must report to duty.
“Casric showed enough disrespect and demonstrated no sense of care regarding all the things that I have been through. I mean, I was hijacked recently on the 17th of September, but I never received a call from them to say they were sorry for what happened to me. Instead, they said the incident occurred outside of work and that I should report for work; if I don’t, I will be fined,” he added.
“So, those are the things that you don’t want to associate yourself with in terms of professionalism. It was a matter of, you know what? The same way you got a contract at Casric, you can get a contract elsewhere. Also, for me to open up to new ideas and new opportunities.”
Mpame also had his fair share of play in Europe representing teams such as Cigli Belediye Spor, Goztepe, and Narlidere Spor.
Mpame is not the first player from Casric to come out to speak their mind on how they felt hard done by the club. The club’s former captain, Maluleke Mathonsi, is one of the players who expressed his feelings about his unpleasant departure from the Mpumalanga outfit.
EFFORTS TO REACH CASRIC STARS WERE FRUITLESS
FARPost attempted to contact Casric Stars’ head of marketing and communication, Luther Mochabe, for a comment. Mochabe directed us to the club’s football manager, Peter Koutroulis, who did not respond to our calls.
We also tried to reach out to Casric Stars’ CEO, Bucs Mthombeni, but were unable to get a response from him either.
RELATED STORY: Malukele Mathonsi opens up about his unpleasant departure from Casric Stars
