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THE conflict between the Premier Soccer League (PSL) and one of their newest babies, Sheasham, over the suspension of Bata Stadium in Gweru, dominated domestic football conversations this week.
The whole issue was mired in controversy after the PSL reversed a decision by the stadium inspection committee, the First Instance Body (FIB), approving the use of the stadium for Premiership games this season.
This has left Sheasham’s home game against CAPS United hanging in the balance as the Gweru side are now pushing for a postponement, while the PSL are insisting the game should be played as scheduled.
Sheasham were earlier this month given the green light to host Premiership matches by the FIB after embarking on massive renovations at Bata stadium, which cost close to US$500 000.
Although the refurbishments have not reached 100 percent, the FIB felt the stadium was good enough to host games while the remaining areas were being attended to.
As a result, they managed to host giants Highlanders without glitches.
But that was before images showing parts of the ground started circulating on social media and showing heaps of sand and debris from additional terraces that were still under construction.
The images provoked mixed reactions from the general public on varied social media platforms and the Premier Soccer League Emergency Committee was forced to reverse the decision of the FIB.
Obviously, the development did not go down well with Sheasham, who have been working hard under extremely difficult conditions to provide a service that even the traditional big teams have failed to deliver.
A club like Highlanders has been in existence since 1926 but they do not have a stadium which they have invested in. The same with Dynamos, who celebrate 60 years this year.
So, Sheasham, who are playing domestic topflight football for the first time this year, needed to be appreciated and commended for their efforts instead of being maligned.
From the way the Premier Soccer League have been corresponding with the new boys, it seems the Gweru’s side’s efforts are not being recognised.
The Premier Soccer League should have sought better ways of addressing the issues they were not happy with at Bata Stadium.
The assumption is that the league bosses have been working with the new boys from the start and that their stadium was homologated wasn’t something that the Premier Soccer League were not aware of.
In fact, they have some representatives from their office who are part of the FIB, which okayed the stadium for football games.
What has changed now?
The same Premier Soccer League even drove trucks to Gweru, where they held road shows, encouraging people to come and watch their favourite local team in action against Highlanders at Bata.
Highlanders never raised a complaint about the stadium.
The Premier Soccer League also said nothing about the game until someone on social media raised questions over sections of the stadium that were covered in heaps of sand and debris.
So is the Premier Soccer League now being run by social media or their own regulations and the criteria set in determining what makes a stadium suitable for homologation?
More questions keep cropping up. Who has the authority to approve or condemn a stadium?
Is it the Premier Soccer League Emergency Committee or the FIB, which is a body that falls under ZIFA and is recognised by CAF and FIFA under Club Licensing?
Is it also by coincidence that CAPS United are Sheasham’s next opponents? Farai Jere, who is the Premier Soccer League chairman is also the president of CAPS United.
Are Sheasham being bullied because of their low status in the league? They were not even consulted before the decision to de-homologate their stadium was taken.
The Gweru side would be vindicated to complain, as they did, that the matter was not handled justly; that their efforts have been belittled, that they were victims of treacherous football leadership and that they would incur more costs because of poor decisions, hence their request to ask for a postponement.
It’s all chaotic.
Sheasham would forever feel that they were not treated fairly as they have been forced to shut down their newly-refurbished home ground and revert to a rented venue at Mandava for their home game against CAPS United.
The PSL needs to be more professional in their approach, lest they set a bad precedent, which is not good for our football.
Online Reporter