Maqonda Ndlovu
Brave Gladiators’ captain Zenatha Coleman has accused the Namibia Football Association (NFA) of ‘killing their dreams’ by failing to consult the technical team on issues affecting the national women’s team.
She said this in a post shared on Facebook after the Gladiators were knocked out of the Olympic Qualifiers by Morocco on Tuesday via a 4-0 scoreline.
The Namibians played both matches in Morocco since Namibia does not have a stadium to host international matches.
Writing on her page, Coleman said the NFA failed to consult the coach about the time the team played their ‘home match’ in Morocco, knowing the difference in weather conditions between the countries.
“You agreed to everything (always saying yes to everything), the Moroccan federation suggested because they paid for everything. Everything was a disadvantage to us from the start; we played against the home team, their fans, and especially the referees. The results could have been different if you cared a little bit about women’s football and these Brave Gladiators,” fumed the Turkish-based striker.
She added that the NFA has always used “cutting costs as an excuse while they are only paying N$12 000 for both matches.” Coleman said they would rather forfeit the allowances from the NFA and play in South Africa as compared to playing in the opposition’s countries for both matches.
“We have an important WAFCON qualifier in three weeks against Ghana, and I believe and trust in this team for possible qualification. I am extremely proud of my girls and the technical team,” Coleman concluded, suggesting that the NFA should get their eggs in a row to help the team qualify.
This is not the first time that Coleman has raised these issues surrounding the unfair treatment of women footballers in Namibia.
The post drew over 80 comments
and 185 shares, with many other issues rising to the forefront, including the
fact that the home-based players have been away from home for 40 days.
The team left Namibia for a camp in South Africa in mid-September before playing Gambia home and away in Morocco.
The team then came back to South Africa to participate in the Cosafa Cup.
After the tournament, the team had a two-week camp in South Africa before flying back to Morocco for another camp and two matches against the hosts.
Efforts to get comments from acting secretary general Jochen Traut proved fruitless, as he was out of the country at the time of going to press.
However, the chairperson of the Namibia Women’s Football Association, Monica Shapwa, sympathised with the girls, saying that unfortunately, the team is run by the NFA, not the women’s department.
“I feel her pain. You can’t go fight the enemy in their camp. We had the opportunity to play in South Africa, just like our male counterparts. The men U/20 played Angola in Angola, and the women played in Congo Brazzaville. They lost both matches; we should have learned a lesson then. To be away from home for 40 days is not conducive for anyone,” she said.
She added that with the team travelling from Morocco after the Gambia matches and playing at the Cosafa, arrangements could have been made for the team to come back home and get a few days to meet their families before resuming training here and flying to Morocco. Shapwa said the psychological aspect should have been taken into account.
“In Congo, there were issues of age cheating, and we could not do anything about it. People who were supposed to be there are not there to facilitate these investigations. It’s not fair for the girls,” she said.
The girls were expected to arrive in Namibia yesterday.