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Paul Munyuki Harare Bureau
ZIMBABWE Rugby Union vice-presidents, Colleen de Jong of Harare and Nyararai Sibanda of Bulawayo, have been sucked into a plot to undermine the National Rugby League which resulted in the elite division losing the Delta Beverages sponsorship. The NRL, led by president Noddy Kanyangarara, had applied for a $330,000 sponsorship package for the 2014 season but the figure was cut down by about $120,000 to $209, 970.

But it emerged that hawks within the ZRU, allegedly led by De Jong and Sibanda, scuttled the deal after unsuccessfully trying to hijack the agreement. The two vice-presidents went behind the back of their president John Falkenberg and Kanyangarara to try and deal directly with Delta.

According to documents which our Harare Bureau has seen, all seemed to have been laid out for a branded NRL season to get underway.

The documents show that the sponsorship was to cater for necessities that included playing kits, inter-city transport, ambulance fees, team medical kits, individual and team prizes and other equipment that included balls, referees fees, team kit packs and referees equipment.

Had the sponsorship deal materialised, the top team at the end of the 2014 season was expected to get $10,000, $7,500 for the runners-up while the bottom placed side would get $3,000 and a further $10,000 set aside for awards. De Jong declined to discuss the matter when contacted for comment.

“As the ZRU we’re not in a position to discuss any sponsorship deals or details with the media,” De Jong said.

However, our Harare Bureau understands that De Jong, Sibanda, the then director of rugby Liam Middleton, and former ZRU marketing consultant David Crouch scuttled the deal after pestering Delta about securing a possible sponsorship package.

With conflicting signals coming from the rugby leadership, Delta then resolved to withhold and eventually cancel the deal leading to the abortive ending of the NRL programme last year. Communication between the Delta Beverages team, led by their marketing director Maxen Karombo and the NRL, show that the sponsors were not amused by the fact that the ZRU were nagging them about the sponsorship package.

“Max (Karombo) said that he was getting calls from ZRU, Nyararai (Sibanda) in particular, wanting to meet him to discuss the NRL sponsorship going forward.

“Max again turned him down and told him that until rugby has one position he was not going to entertain anyone from rugby.

“I think Max’s question was, ‘why they (ZRU) keep going back to him on their own without the NRL administrators present?’

“So I met John, the ZRU president, who was equally surprised that ZRU officials were still going to Delta after the first meeting was very clear,” said Kanyangarara in one of the letters to Delta marketing manager Patricia Murambinda. According to Kanyangarara, Falkenberg was part of the initial plan to sabotage the NRL deal.

“At first John (Falkenberg) approached Delta with his fellow ZRU officials and this was when they were told by the Delta Beverages executives that they would not negotiate anything in the absence of NRL representation and he never went back.

“Unfortunately there are others who felt that they could arm-twist our sponsors to divert the funds to the ZRU but the Delta officials stood their ground and indicated they would not release the funds to anyone else other than the NRL,” said Kanyangarara.

Kanyangarara and his management team did not give up on the deal.

“In a follow up to our tele-conversation, I had a meeting with Zimbabwe Rugby Union president, John Falkenberg (herein copied) who I must say was very dismayed that people (ZRU officials) keep getting in touch with your office on issues to do with the National Rugby League and or any other business related to rugby.

“May I take this time to apologise for the confusion this has caused and hopefully this will not happen again. As NRL we value your and Delta’s support for Rugby and we look forward to a continued good working relationship,” wrote Kanyangarara.