Of Rollers, Chiefs and escalating boardroom wrangles

| Friday February 4, 2011 00:00

 

Though it came as a surprise in some quarters, Zebras' winger Joel Mogorosi is said to have made a dream move from Rollers to Chiefs in monetary terms. With a desired move to South Africa and another cup and league double a distinct possibility, it was not expected that Mogorosi would leave Rollers where he is captain and undisputed star to join Chiefs who are 10 points off the pace in the be MOBILE Premier League title race. However, money talked and off he went to Magosi only to find himself in no man's land. Figuratively speaking, it is like Mogorosi left Gaborone side, Rollers, to join Kgatleng giants, Chiefs, and found himself somewhere in Pilane while his destination was Mochudi. Not that some excitable Rollers' supporters or officials ambushed and grounded him in Pilane like it happened to some two youngsters at the start of the season. This time, Rollers are allegedly colluding with South African giants, Orlando Pirates to cause trouble for Chiefs and the targeted player.

Mogorosi reportedly signed a two-and-a- half-year contract with Chiefs but his move has been halted as Pirates now claim ownership of the Zebras' winger. The player insists he did not sign any contract with Pirates and was moving to Chiefs as a free agent after his contract with Rollers expired in December. Although the issue is yet to be settled, some believe Rollers who seem to have distanced themselves from the issue are behind the claim by Pirates. They say it is one of those conflicts that nowadays occur when a player is transferring between the two sides.

Rollers and Chiefs have in recent years been involved in a tug-of-war over a number of players. In 2008, the two sides engaged in a bitter fight over the transfer of Sekhana Koko and Bobby Mathe from Rollers to Chiefs. Koko had just hit top form for Mapalastina when Chiefs lured him. When the player resigned from Rollers, the club claimed that Koko had a contract with them and refused to release him to Chiefs. Rollers demanded that Chiefs pay a reasonable transfer fee for Koko, while the player argued that he had no contract with Popa and was therefore supposed to move as a free agent.

The matter was taken to the Players' Status Committee (PSC), which ruled that Rollers had no reason to prevent the player from joining a club of his choice. Interestingly, Koko is now back at Rollers where he is tipped to step into Mogorosi's large boots. As for Bobby Mathe, Rollers lodged a protest after Chiefs put the young goalkeeper on the bench when the two sides met in a league match. Chiefs won the encounter 2-0 and Rollers protested that the player belonged to them as he was registered with their (Rollers') development side. Botswana Football Association (BFA) Disciplinary Committee (DC) ruled that the goalkeeper was registered with Rollers at the time and therefore did not belong to Chiefs. Chiefs were subsequently fined P2, 000 by the BFA DC. The player eventually joined Chiefs last year.

In 2009, Chiefs, having lost their first choice goalkeeper, Noah Maposa to South African club, Bay United together with striker, Pontsho Moloi, decided to recruit Barolong Lemmenyane who at the time had just finished his loan spell at Mogoditshane Fighters from Rollers. The end of the loan spell at Fighters meant that his contract with Rollers had expired and Chiefs decided to take advantage to sign him as a free agent. But the move stalled after Rollers demanded a compensation fee of P20, 000 for the goalkeeper. The matter was brought before the Players' Status Committee, which ordered Rollers to produce proof of the money they claimed to have spent on the custodian. The committee eventually ruled that it was not satisfied with the evidence that Mapalastina brought.

The committee ruled that Rollers be paid P4, 300 by any club interested in the services of Lemmenyane. Chiefs eventually recruited him.

All these disputes have created tension between the two sides whose clashes on the field have always made headlines. However, in the end, the players are always the ones who suffer as they have to wait before they can be in action.