The Sunday News
Ngqwele Dube Sports Correspondent
ELECTIONS always afford the electorate to get even with leaders who would have failed to either bring change or deliver success and prosperity during their tenure.
A few months ago an opportunity availed itself to the electorate in women football to elect a capable leadership that would restore pride and sanity in women’s football. Amid jubilation they celebrated the ushering of a new women’s football executive pregnant with high hopes, that the newcomers would rejuvenate the game, and subsequently resuscitate the top flight Super League that has been agonisingly lying dormant.
But barely a few months down the line, there are murmurs of disillusionment with knives out for the young Zimbabwe Women Football executive led by Miriam Sibanda.
Sibanda toppled Mavis Gumbo who paid the price largely for failing to run the national Super League in 2013.
In 2012 Marange Resources sponsored ZWF to the tune of $3 million but clubs did not receive their dues for their efforts in the league and Gumbo and her team never bothered to give an explanation on the circumstances that led to that development.
The same Super League clubs are now up in arms with Sibanda’s executive for lack of foresight, heavy-handedness, and making unilateral decisions.
In separate interviews club officials and owners who spoke to Sunday News Sport on condition that they were not named, said they were unhappy with the way things had turned out since Sibanda assumed the reins.
They accused Sibanda of listening to a chosen few, while ignoring the collective view of the majority.
This attitude, they said, manifested itself following a resolution that the national league be split into two regional leagues to ease the financial burden of teams in the unbranded league.
The resolution to split the league was later reversed. Although the current national league started with 16 teams, only 14 remain. Former Bulawayo powerhouse New Orleans and Masvingo withdrew after failing to pay registration fees.
Some clubs in the so-called national league have failed to fulfil away fixtures citing financial constraints, while some matches are being played in a haphazard and directionless manner. Some teams are forced to play two games in two consecutive days. A look at the log shows some teams having played 15 matches while others have only featured in six games. And with less than two months to go before the end of the year, all indications are that some teams would not play against each other.
Sibanda admitted women’s football was in a quagmire, citing lack of funding and a frosty attitude from Zifa, as the reasons.
She also cited a tough environment wrought by the economic situation in the country that makes it difficult for the teams to fulfil games.
Sibanda, however, refuted allegations that she had influenced the decision to have the league played national arguing the majority view prevailed when the issue was put up to vote.
“During a meeting, a suggestion was raised that the league be split into two with the top teams facing each other to decide the winner but others objected and their view won on the day,” said Sibanda without elaboration.
Respected and able Inline secretary and benefactor Trust Kwembeya, who was elected alongside Sibanda, resigned from the executive in August signalling a rift within the new board. However, the reasons behind Kwembeya’s resignation could not be ascertained.
Sibanda is comforted by the fact that there is action in the Super League this year unlike last year when no ball was kicked at national level after the Gumbo-led executive fell out with 2012 sponsor, Marange Resources.
However, while Sibanda is just sitting in “cold comfort” due to the absence of teams that could add value to the league, matches are being staged haphazardly, with some clubs choosing which opponents to play due to the absence of a proper fixtures roster.
“Teams decide who they play against, instead of a fixture list coming from ZWF to indicate which team plays who. Actually there is a WhatsApp group where teams liaise to organise games and then inform (ZWF administrator, Theresa) Maguraushe of the fixture,” said one official.
However, Sibanda, who is fast gaining notoriety for “lame excuses’’ said the “frustrating relationship” with Zifa, particularly the chief executive officer, Jonathan Mashingaidze, was hindering progress.
Sibanda said ZWF were entitled to 15 percent of the annual Fifa Financial Assistance Programme funds that they were yet to receive from Zifa. She put the figure at $37 500.
Mashingaidze, however, said the funds that Sibanda was referring to were developmental funds and would only be released when the ZWF submit a development plan that is created in liaison with and acceptable to Zifa technical director, Maxwell Jongwe.
“The money is for development programmes and not for administration. If they come up with programmes that are development orientated we would have no problem availing the funds to them but at the moment they have never submitted any plan relating to development. The money will not be transferred to their accounts but used through the technical director,” said Mashingaidze.
On the issue of relegation, Sibanda admitted they were yet to come up with rules on the relegation format.
Sibanda could not disclose the fate of the regional teams that would be promoted to the national league next year.
“It is an issue that we will deal with later, I think for now the focus is on next year we are mopping up the league and preparing for next year. As the executive we are going to sit down with teams and map the way forward,” said Sibanda.
She said it was unfortunate that some teams were reluctant to fulfil while others had to travel long journeys and play two games within 24 hours.
“We have teams like Hwange who travel overnight to play two games with very young players but we have some teams that are refusing. However, I feel we shouldn’t be subjecting youngsters to such pressures,” she said.
Hwange, which is funded by the Hwange Colliery Company, has managed to fulfil away fixtures but under difficult circumstances.
In a Face book post, the club’s official, Weekly Mwale lamented the taxing schedule they had to complete saying they had played eight consecutive away games, becoming the most travelled team in the league. Mwale added: “It is surprising teams like Aces and Inline Academy only play at home”.
