We get nothing from Swallows – ‘Birds’ development
MBABANE – “We don’t get any help from Mbabane Swallows.” These are the words of an impeccable source within the Swallows development teams’ structure who revealed that the management of the senior team was not helping in any way towards the expenses of the juniors.
Mbabane Swallows has junior teams from the Under-13s to the Under-19s; the latter is a must requirement for all premier league teams to meet the Club Licencing, which was imposed by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA).
The Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) recently introduced the Under-19s League and currently Royal Leopard are perched on top of the standings.
The source said it was worrying that the Umkhonto KaShaka Management Committee (MC) was not helping the juniors as they had to fork out money from their pockets to finance expenses of the juniors from the Under-13s to the Under-19s.
SENIOR
The source went on to say that it was disturbing to hear some of the senior team official bragging about the performance of the juniors, yet there was nothing that they pumped in the progress of the juniors.
“We feel neglected by management as we are struggling to make ends meet in the day-to-day operation of the junior teams. Our shoulder to cry on is Make Lungile, who also gives us money to cater for the expenses of the
teams such as transport,” the source explained.
He also said that they were made to fuel up the senior team’s bus when attending games for the Under-19s, which puzzled them because the boys would end up playing for Swallows in the premier league.
The source also disclosed that the MC was even failing to give them playing kits for all the junior teams and those that they were using were given to them by the slain Swallows Chairperson Victor ‘Maradona’ Gamedze’s wife Princess
Lungile.
PRESIDENT
When quizzed why they did not communicate the challenges they were facing to the President of the club, Archbishop Bheki Lukhele, the source said it was against the team’s protocols to go direct to the president.
He said they were told to address all their challenges to Governor, Sebenele Nhlengethwa. “The only money that we got from the president was E2 000 after we got the rare opportunity to meet him and that was the end of it,” he said.
Meanwhile, the red and white capital city giants General Manager (GM) Sandile ‘Beyond 2000’ Zwane could not be reached for comments as his phone was not available and he did not respond to a WhatsApp message which was sent to him by the time this report was compiled.