Decide Nhendo
Bikita Minerals FC was finally crowned Eastern Region Soccer League (ERSL) champions of 2023 which means they get a ticket into Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League (PSL) following a judgment by ERSL disciplinary committee handed down on March 14 over a dispute between the Lithium Boys and Tenax FC.
Many soccer fans in the Eastern region were in suspense waiting for the judgment over the matter that was dragging for too long having started on November 20 when ERSL published that Bikita Minerals were ERSL 2023 champions.
Initially, the case between the two sides started last year when Tenax FC finished on the top of ERSL but the decision was rescinded after Bikita Minerals complained that Grayham FC had violated game rules in their encounter.
The ERSL went on to crown the Lithium Boys as champions after granting them three points from their match against Grayham whom they had accused of using an ineligible player. However, the celebrations were short-lived when Tennax appealed to ZIFA which nullified Bikita’s promotion and the matter dragged on for about two months with Bikita finally winning the battle.
In the hands of the ZIFA Appeals Committee, the case went for nearly two months without a solid ruling until a fortnight ago when the ruling referred the matter back to the Bikita vs Grayham case which advised the ERSL to constitutionally sit and appoint a disciplinary committee to work on the matter where Grayham was found guilty.
‘The defendant is found guilty as charged. The match which was played under protest between Complainant and Defendant is forfeited. The Defendant is declared to have lost 3-0 since the goal difference at the end of the match was less favorable to Complainant,” reads part of the judgment.
Bikita FC and Grayham FC were both part of the top four teams that played champion decider matches on Nov 18 2023 and ERSL management ordered the matches to be played on the same date, to commence at the same time to avert match-fixing.
At the hearing, that is where ERSL was found guilty of failing to convene a disciplinary hearing in terms of rule 16 of ERSL rules and regulations as Zifa managed to find out that ERSL executives met in Mutare on November 25 2023 and that’s where they finalized on their capacities to award Bikita FC 2023 ERSL championship citing use of unregistered player by Grayham FC in their deciding match, instead of forming a disciplinary committee to deal with the matter.
