Santos' 1-0 victory over Jomo Cosmos at the Athlone Stadium on Saturday afternoon was not enough to avoid the playoffs.
The Peoples' Team will go into the playoffs with the team finishing second and third in the National First Division, having finished 15th on the log.
Black Leopards escaped the playoffs, beating Ajax Cape Town 3-1 to remain in the 14th spot.
The home side came out of the blocks relatively quickly, but did not create too many clear cut chances.
There were half chances and, after five minutes, Erwin Isaacs scuffed his effort wide and then Jonathan Armogam had his 20th minute goal-bound effort cleared off the line by Thabo Mokgalushi.
Salmaan King also had a free kick tipped over, while the visiting side offered very little in terms of a goal threat.
Santos opened the scoring in the 47th minute when Bheki Shabangu headed home from Ricardo Skippers' cross.
King had the chance to double Santos' advantage after 58 minutes but, having gone on a storming run, his finish let him down as he blasted the ball over the bar.
After that there were few chances; both sides had their moments on the ball, but failed to find the spark needed to create chances.
The home team had late opportunities to add a second goal, but King headed over the bar and Riaan Eugene shot tamely from close range with five minutes to go. – Sapa