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Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
In the past few months, there has been growing talk about the role former players must play in domestic football.

There is evident discontent in the football community over the way the game is being presently run, not just at national level led by Felton Kamambo, but in all other structures, which ultimately elect the national leadership.

Some are of the opinion that former players can be our football saviours based on their undoubted knowledge of the game, especially on the basis that the player is the main character in the game.

They argue that their input would be invaluable and far better than someone that had never worn a football kit.

But the sticking point is at what level these former players should be involved in football administration.

Should they go into office on a special ticket where they won’t be challenged, but come in like primary and secondary school heads’ representatives, women’s football representatives and tertiary institutions representatives?

That is a possibility, but the next challenge is the Zifa constitution, which at the moment has no such provision for former players.

It, therefore, means the constitution needs to be amended, but such a motion needs someone that believes in former players to move it.

The problem with some former players is that they believe they have a God-given right to be in football administration.

They believe they can just make their way into national football administration by virtue of being former players, yet the best they can do for themselves is to start at lower levels where they will become part of Zifa members and delegates to the Zifa Congress where motions such as constitutional amendments are tabled and possibly adopted.

Our former players need to organise themselves and not seek to ride on their past game and glory.

By the way, it’s also not true that by virtue of being a former player, one will become an excellent administrator.

Talents are different, hence we have former great players that have struggled as coaches, yet a former average player scales dizzy heights as a coach.

So it’s in the interest of former players to know that to venture into football politics, they must use the same route that every other Zimbabwean uses and once elected to vigorously push for a constitutional amendment that will introduce a special clause reserving a certain number of seats for former players in the Zifa Assembly.

There have been a number of former players that served in the Zifa executive committee such as Bennedict Moyo, the late Edzai Kasinauyo and John Phiri, while Methembe Ndlovu and Faroah Jele served in the Zifa Assembly.

Some former players have also been at the helm of football clubs such as George Shaya (Dynamos chairman), Jerry Sibanda (Bulawayo City chairman) and Ernest Maphepha Sibanda (Highlanders).

What is worrying though is that most of these former players experienced unceremonious exits from the game, while others like Shaya and Maphepha had unsavoury moments.

We remember another DeMbare great Memory Mucherahowa tearing into Shaya, accusing him of giving them soup while he devoured all the meat.

He accused Shaya of sharing a large chunk of the US$16 million they got from their phenomenal run in the 1998 Caf Champions League in which they reached the final.

Mucherahowa also accused Shaya of fining players that demanded a fair share of the prize money US$5 000 each.
Shaya’s case is a classic example of lack of corporate governance.

Maphepha also found himself banned from running for office at Highlanders after being found guilty of misappropriating some funds from Obidiah Tarumbwa’s transfer to Belgium.

While former players can run for any football office in the country, it’s incorrect to classify them as saints.

If former players are wise, they’ll realise that they can easily occupy all grassroots administration structures and influence who runs the game at national level instead of always wanting to start right at the top.

In fact, if they start at the bottom, they can easily occupy all available positions by supporting each other and going into football administration for the right reasons.