Mikia Kalati
THE country’s football has in the past few weeks been thrown into turmoil over the foreign player registration scandal involving premier league giants, Bantu.
A Matso Matebele were convicted of fraudulently registering four more than the stipulated five foreign players by the Disciplinary and Protest Committee (DISPROCO) of the Lesotho Football Association.
The club was docked three points which were handed to Lioli, who had lodged a protest after the two teams’ match in December last year.
There is no doubt that the saga has derailed the league and also taken away a lot from our football.
Any passionate supporter would agree that matches that are decided in boardrooms are never exciting irrespective of who benefits.
But off course, this does not rule out the fact that football is a game that is governed by rules and regulations which should be respected at all the times.
Now that the matter has been settled by the two football courts in favour of Lioli, I hope Bantu will make peace with the fact that they have lost the case and life should move on.
We still wait for the LeFA to do play part as per the recommendations by both DISPROCO and the Appeals Board to investigate the matter further and to de-register the four concerned players.
But that does not take away the fact that I would like to see our football regain the momentum it had prior to this case.
Surely it will take time for Bantu to adjust especially now that they have to deregister four players.
Two of them, Itumeleng Falene and Thabo Selisa were regulars in the team and A Matšo Matebele have to dig deeper to maintain the dominance that they enjoyed in the last two seasons.
How they are going to survive without the four players makes the whole affair anxious.
A Matšo Matebele have a difficult task on Saturday in the LNIG Top8 where they take on LCS in the semi-finals while Lioli face Matlama in the other match.
Masheshena look to be at their best again having hammered LDF 5-0 in the quarterfinals and also beat Linare 4-0 in a league match last weekend.
I believe the football fanatics would be keen to see how Bantu performs in this match as well as their remaining games against the likes of Matlama and Lioli in the league.
The other semi-final match between Matlama and Lioli will surely produce fireworks as Tse Nala coach, Morena Ramorebodi, is desperate to prove his worth and this competition presents him with that opportunity.
Matlama coach, Mosito Matela, is also on the same boat having turned Tse Putsoa into a competitive side again this season.
The LNIG Top8 is no doubt a chance for Matlama to finally end their long drought for a major trophy this season.
