Zifa refuse to pay players after poor show

By Our Correspondent

HARARE , May 7, 2008 (thezimbabwetimes.com) - In an unprecedented move, the Zimbabwe Football Association (Zifa) has refused to pay the national soccer team their bonuses for Sunday’s 1-1 draw against Namibia , saying it was a poor display which was totally undeserving of reward.

Zifa’s bizarre decision - the first time the soccer motherbody has ever failed to pay players on national duty - comes as members of the national team continued to make enquiries on when they would be paid half of the $150 billion due to them.

But on Tuesday, Henrietta Rushwaya, the association’s chief executive officer berated  the team for “a shoddy display”, saying Zifa would not pay a single cent to the team because of its lack-lustre performance, which has been widely condemned by the generality of the local football fraternity.

The Warriors, made up of locally-based players only, were uninspiring on the field at Gwanzura Stadium. Their poor performance sparked off animated debate among fans who thronged the Highfields venue, on whether it was a wise move to recruit Brazilian Jorge Claudine Georgini - also known as Valinhos - as national team coach, early this year.

“Zifa will not be paying anything to the team because that would be tantamount to condoning one of the worst performances by the Warriors, in our national colours,” charged Rushwaya. “That kind of display cannot and should not, be coming from a national team which is serious about making it as a soccer powerhouse in the region, let alone on the continent.

“We have always said this is a result-orientated job; they failed to beat Namibia as was widely expected of them, so why pay them for a disappointing draw against such minnows as Namibia?”

”In fact, as we speak, we have summoned the technical staff for a hearing to find out what went wrong in that match. We need to be asking questions whether they are the right people to be driving Zimbabwe’s vision for a place at the 2010 Fifa World Cup and 2010 Nations Cup.

“But the bottom line is, ‘no result, no payment’, and that is the policy and message everyone out there should understand because we are serious about this team, and what Zimbabwe should be doing come 2010.”

She also dismissed claims that Zifa had offered the Warriors $150 billion each for beating the Brave Warriors of Namibia in the tie, which is a new competition launched by the Confederation of African Football late last year.

”I only came to know about that kind of money on Sunday on the day of the match,” said Rushwaya. “We would never pay that kind of money, which almost translates to US$1000. Why would we promise anybody such a ridiculous amount of money? Poor performance, no payment across the board, and that goes with the coaches as well.”

But members of the Warriors insisted on Tuesday, they had been promised the hefty payoff by Zifa, only to be given a paltry $2 billion each. The payment, according to the disgruntled players, was for the weeklong training camp ahead of the CHAN qualifier.

 The money contrasts starkly with what Premier Soccer League giants Dynamos paid their players for beating Tunisian outfit Etoile du Sahel in the first leg, second round match of the CAF Champions League two weeks ago. De Mbare players were paid $30 billion each, their assistant coaches $45 billion, with head-coach David Mandigora smiling all the way to the bank with a $60 billion cheque for the 1-0 victory over the defending champions.

Meanwhile, Zifa appears headed for a showdown with the players, after those interviewed said they would have to review their positions with the team in the return leg of the competition.

The second leg of the first round match has been scheduled for May 16-18, with Cote d’Ivoire hosting the maiden edition from the February 22 to March 8, 2009.