adminRay Bande Senior Reporter
THE 2014 Sylvia Dube memorial gets into the second round this weekend while participants from last year’s edition of the same tournament are yet to receive their dues, Weekender Sport has learnt.
The Sylvia Dube Trophy is a knockout competition for Division One soccer teams in the Eastern Region which is played annually in memory of Sylvia, the late wife of the founding chairman of the ZIFA Eastern Region, Cuthbert Dube.
Over the years this competition has grown from initially a Chitungwiza provincial competition to a regional competition.
Dube sponsors the tournament.
Eastern Region Division One side Renco Mine earned the 2013 Sylvia Dube Memorial tournament title after outplaying highly fancied Gaza Gunners of Chipinge, but they are yet to receive their prize money.
2013 winners Renco Mine, who were supposed to have a comfortable 2014 season only if they had received the $27 000 they were promised, are understood to have received only $1 000.
Runners-up Gunners, who were set to get $20 000 for their efforts, also got $1 000 only.
Gunners director Shingi Mathabuka confirmed that they received $1 000 and the club is still expecting to get the reminder, as promised.
“I cannot really say much about it because we are still expecting to get the remaining amount.
“We only received $1 000 and we were told that the remainder will be paid as soon as things improve financially for the sponsor,” he said.
Investigations by this publication have revealed that the clubs received $1 000 each for taking part in last year’s tournament and the rest of the prize money is yet to be disbursed.
The sponsor is yet to advise the value of this year’s tournament which will only be concluded early next year before 2014 season kicks off.
Repeated efforts to get a comment from Dube were fruitless at the time going to press, as his mobile went unanswered while the Zifa Eastern Region chairman, Piraishe Mambena, was said to be attending a football administration seminar in South Africa together with his board members and general manager Tedious Machawira.
Dube, himself a former Zifa Eastern Region chairman, usually comes under criticism for even failing to show up during national team matches as expected of him being the man occupying the highest office in the administration of the game in the country.
The past winners of the competition in the Eastern
Region include Renco Mine FC 2013, Mutare City Rovers 2012, Hippo FC 2011, AMC FC 2010, Hippo FC 2009, Highway 2008, Eagles 2007, Blue Swallows 2006, Blue Swallows 2005, Windsor 2004, PSMAS 2003, 2002 and 2001.
Online Reporter