Hunt: Financial strain forcing PSL clubs to turn to youth

Durban City head coach Gavin Hunt has offered a candid assessment of the financial realities shaping the Betway Premiership, suggesting that rising costs and shrinking budgets are forcing clubs to turn to younger players in order to survive.

Hunt, 61, took charge of newly promoted Durban City at the start of the season and has long been a believer in giving youngsters a platform. Across his decorated career at SuperSport United, Kaizer Chiefs and Bidvest Wits, the veteran coach has handed hundreds of opportunities to untested players — a philosophy that appears to be even more relevant in the current climate.

“It’s changing, hey. I think financially it’s a problem, teams can’t afford to pay big wages, so they’ve decided to go younger with their squads all over the world,” he said.

“There’s quite a lot of unknown players in the PSL right now because it’s cheaper. You’ll find a lot of squads are going younger, fresher and cheaper and try to build from there rather than have bigger earners and the team doesn’t achieve.”

Hunt has watched this trend unfold over the last few seasons, noting that it has changed how teams prepare and compete. Where once opposition squads were filled with familiar figures, he admits that is no longer the case.

“When you see the team sheet of the opposition now, you don’t really know them, even though you can watch them, but you don’t know them because there’s a lot of unknown entities — and it’s because of the financial strain on the clubs, there’s no doubt about it.”

The four-time league-winning coach argues that teams now face a stark choice between investing in proven experience or banking on potential at a fraction of the cost.

“So, there are two ways to look at it: you can have an experienced team and your wage bill is high, or you can have a young, energetic team with huge improvement in it and it will be cheaper.”

Hunt also pointed to the widening financial gap between the league’s traditional powerhouses and the chasing pack. According to him, the disparity in resources has left many clubs relying heavily on academy graduates and untested youngsters just to make ends meet.

“The gap between the haves and the have-nots is getting wider, and it takes a lot to afford the big earners. The guys earning in the 150s upwards and scoring five goals a year — you’d much rather get a youngster to score five goals for you.”

For Hunt, this reality is shaping the future of the local game. While he acknowledges the risks involved in trusting inexperienced players, he insists that the financial model leaves clubs with little choice.

The knock-on effect, he says, is a league filled with fresh faces and unfamiliar names, with only a handful of teams able to hold on to marquee players.

It is a situation that may yet benefit South African football in the long run, as more youngsters are given a platform to play in the top flight. But Hunt is under no illusion that the driving force behind the change is not footballing philosophy, but financial survival.