Volleyball clubs kept in the dark over league

Calistus Kolantsho | Wednesday April 12, 2017 15:28

Mafolofolo coach, Kabo Ntshinogang told Mmegi Sport yesterday that they do not know when the league would start.

He said there is no communication from the Botswana Volleyball Federation (BVF) office regarding the status of the league.

He said the delay has a negative impact on their plans for the season. “The national team is preparing for some qualifiers that would be held in Mozambique and it seems the executive committee is concentrating on that.

They have forgotten about clubs. Clubs are busy training but we might end up halting our programme because we do not know how long it would take for the league to start,” he said.

Ntshinogang pointed out that starting the league in April or May cannot be a challenge, but only if the league structure is reviewed. He said with only seven women clubs in the league, they can play each other once.

“The problem is in the men’s competition. The clubs are many and far from each other. Volleyball does not have its own facilities. We rent out venues and in some instances we are forced to postpone matches because the owners are occupying the halls,” he said.

For his part, Isaac Samuel of Kutlwano shared the same sentiments with Ntshinogang, that there were no updates from the BVF office.

He said they are even thinking that maybe there is no league this year. Samuel said the volleyball leadership should come forward and inform clubs on what is happening.

“We are in the dark like you. The executive is not saying anything about the league. My players are doing physical training at the National Stadium and we would only go to the ground after being informed that the league is starting,” Samuel said.

Meanwhile BVF public relations officer, Kagiso Meswele said they are still busy looking for a sponsor for the league.  He said they expect to reach an agreement with a potential sponsor before it is too late for the league to start.

He said normally the league kicks off either in March or April, but May would not be too late. “If we start next month, we can complete the league on time. Negotiations are ongoing with some companies but others have rejected us. We have long started the process last year,” he said.