Story by Anashe Murombedzi
THE Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) has finally broken its silence on the Bata Stadium saga saying the Gweru venue is not yet ready to host Premier Soccer League matches.
The move comes as a big shock after the ZIFA First Instance Board approved Sheasham’s home ground only to bow down to social media pressure.
The ZIFA First Instance Board which is responsible for approving stadia initially gave Sheasham the green light to use Bata Stadium and the club went on to host Highlanders two weeks ago.
It was however short-lived joy for the league debutants as social media pressure and comments by Highlanders coach Baltermer Brito on the state of the pitch triggered a sequence of events that saw the Premier Soccer League reversing the decision to host matches at Bata stadium before Sheasham threatened not to fulfil their match day 10 encounter against CAPS United.
In the aftermath of all the chaos ZIFA has exposed its double standards after writing to Sheasham listing several areas that need improvement,
What remains unanswered is the reason why the stadium was initially approved despite those outstanding issues.
This has raised questions about the integrity of ZIFA’s First Instance Board.
Concerns have also been raised on who has the power ZIFA or PSL in handling this matter after the football mother body had given the nod to use Bata Stadium.
The confusion has put the match between Sheasham and CAPS United in doubt after the league debutants claimed that their lease to use Mandava Stadium has expired.
