adminBukhosi Mangena Sports Correspondent
PREMIER Soccer League (PSL) chief executive officer Kenny Ndebele has blasted topflight league clubs for releasing their junior players for the National Youth Games saying this went against talent development.
Ndebele was responding to the Bulawayo Province soccer team assistant coach Shadreck Mlauzi, who indicated that they encountered problems with PSL clubs over the release of junior players in his post Games report back to the province’s Sports and Recreation Commission yesterday.
“We as the PSL don’t condone the use of any player who is registered with us by clubs to be used in the Youth Games. That is a platform for young talent and requesting for such players does not make any sense because there is a lot of talent out there that needs exposure more than junior players registered with topflight clubs,” said Ndebele.
“In fact, we will caution any club that does so in the future because we cannot accept such a thing to happen to our football,” he said.
Mlauzi had said some of their players joined camp a day before they departed for Mutare, which gave them selection headaches since they had to drop players that had been training for a month.
“Clubs are short-changing us in terms of preparations because how can you tell a player who had trained with the team for some time that he is not going to start at the expense of an experienced player who came on the last day,” Mlauzi said.
However, Zifa Southern Region chairman Musa Mandaza backed Mlauzi saying they recognised the Youth Games and pledged their continued support.
Bongani Ndlovu