Here is the cast (in order of how they finished last season) for the 2013/2014 drama, and the factors that might direct their fate.
Kaizer Chiefs
The defending champions will be buoyed by the fact that in recent year, the winners have successfully defended their title. Stuart Baxter's mandate was to bring back the glory to youngsters. Key factors: The ability to maintain momentum and the maturity of young players. Being the club they are, there is always pressure to win things, so championship status should not be an added albatross around their necks.
Platinum Stars
The surprise package of last season have lost key personnel on and off the pitch. Coach Cavin Johnson has left for SuperSport United and players such as Thuso Phala have also left. Dikwena's management has spent an inordinately long period fighting to douse Johnson's desire to join United. Key factors: The speed at which the players get used to the methods of the new coach. Dikwena are not a club used to success. Asking them to better last season's performance will be hard.
Orlando Pirates
The Buccaneers' pride is wounded after a barren season. Having won back-to-back trebles, the supporters thought the club had returned to the glory days of most of Bucs's 76 years. The club has lost the services of goalkeeper Moeneeb Josephs and legendary striker Benni McCarthy, but have able replacements in Ghanaian Fatau Dauda and Kermit Erasmus from SuperSport United. Key factors: The five African Champions League matches they still need to play will set the tone for the season. If ever coach Roger De Sa had something to prove to his many detractors, this is the time and the stage.
Bidvest Wits
In line with Bidvest's corporate activities, where chief executive Brian Joffe has been aggressively growing the company by way of hostile takeovers where necessary, the football division of the company seems to be just as hungry. The acquisition of Gavin Hunt, one of the most successful PSL coaches in recent years, is indicative of the desire to have the club sing from the same hymn sheet as the holding company. Key factors: If Hunt instils the will to win that has been his trademark throughout his PSL coaching career, the Clever Boys will prove to be a handful.
SuperSport United
By far one of the most stable and best-run clubs in the league. They are masters of stretching the rand and utilising the players at their disposal. Coach Cavin Johnson arrives from Platinum Stars seeking to do better than the silver medal he won with the Phokeng outfit. Therein lies the ingredients of a competitive side, laced with talent, experience and youthful zeal. Key factors: If Johnson can handle the pressure he created for himself by finishing second in his first season as head coach, the club will be contenders.
Bloemfontein Celtic
Having rewarded their supporters, easily the most loyal of all PSL fans, with the Telkom trophy and an all-round decent season, Phunya Sele Sele will want to elevate their game and be counted among the PSL top guns. Key factors: If Siwelele get into the habit of consistently beating the established top sides, then they might acquire the belief that they have what it takes to be a national giant instead of the regional force they see themselves as.
Free State Stars
The factory of local talent has gone about its business of quietly acquiring the best young players from the villages and township grounds across the land. Steve Komphela's training as a teacher and the fact that he is a lifelong student come in handy at a club with a limited budget but plenty of youngsters eager to learn and become big stars. Key factors: A willingness to learn and the discipline of key players to keep their feet on the ground despite the hype will make Ea Lla Koto a decent proposition and a credit to the PSL.
University of Pretoria
The second season tends to be more difficult for promoted sides. In their maiden season, the players have a lot to prove and their rivals treat them with complacency. Finishing in the top half of the log means that they know they can do better, but so do their rivals. Key factors: Keeping the element of surprise, building on their productive work ethic and improving their home form will shape the evolution of the side.
Moroka Swallows
That Swallows will not defend their MTN title encapsulates how the club's season resembled a freefall. The Birds' fans are traditionally a demanding lot. They will expect better from the club or else they will make coach Zeca Marques's life miserable. Key factors: Failure to properly replace the departed talents of Bennet Chenene and David Mathebula will be felt. The only question is how severely.
Mamelodi Sundowns
At some point in the off season, the club had more than 50 players on its list. It is a mystery why nobody at the club realises that it is not money that buys success, but the prudent use of cash. Coach Pitso Mosimane believes the football public has not shown him the respect he deserves and will want to use this season to earn the regard he craves. Key factors: The sooner the players become a team, the better it will be for the hearts of the long- suffering Brazilian supporters.
Maritzburg United
The Team of Choice is a hustling outfit. Despite a perennially limited budget, they always do an honest day's work, regardless of who the coach is. In Ernst Middendorp, their instinctive style finds structure. Key factors: Home fans can propel the club to become better. Maritzburg United's management has done their bit, and it is now up to the communities of Maritzburg and the Midlands to sustain their only chance of seeing top-flight football on their doorstep.
Amazulu
It will be in their best interest not to let their win over Manchester City go to their heads. Over the years Usuthu have let down their supporters with a sub-par performance. Their owners have spent considerably this time, and coach Craig Roslee will have no excuse if his side spends much of the season in the relegation zone, as it did last season. Key factors: If the players match the owners' ambitions and appreciate that they play for a club with a proud heritage, Usuthu will compete with the big guns.
Lamontville Golden Arrows
Arrows are an endangered species. They are among the last proponents of a game based on possession, patience and sudden bursts of pace. Coach Manqoba Mngqithi has brought in a bunch of amateurs he believes will return the club to its roots and make them the neutral fan's beautiful instinct. Key factors: Mngqithi's gamble must pay off, or the club will be in trouble.
Ajax Cape Town
Having survived relegation play-offs on the last day of the season and with the boardroom tug-of-war having been resolved with the selling- off by the Comitis brothers to their partners-turned-foes, Ajax have the potential to be the respected club they have been for most of their existence. Key factors: Muhsin Ertugral has a full season to weave his magic. If the new management does not interfere with what worked under the Comitis rule, many clubs will dread visiting Cape Town.
Polokwane City
As is always the case, the newly promoted side will be odds-on favourites to return to the lower leagues. In City's case the situation might be aggravated by the fact that they have not done much to bolster the side with players with premiership experience. Key factors: If they use the low expectations everyone has of them to their advantage, they could be the surprise package of the season.
Mpumalanga Black Aces
They have matched Sundowns as the busy bees of the off-season with a new coach and a dozen new players. This is often results in factions forming between the old hands who believe they deserve respect for bringing the club to the elite league, and the new hands, who might be derided as know-it-all. Key factors: Like Sundowns, they need to make a team of a group of players.