05 Dec 2018

Debswana First Division North league has turned into a battle field for teams that used to compete in the elite league. 

The teams relegated from the premier league and tussling it out in the Debswana First Division North league include former Mascom Premier League champions, Ecco City Greens, now called Francistown City Greens, Motlakase Power Dynamos, Tafic, Great North Tigers, Green Lovers and Nico United. 

Morupule Wanderes, Eleven Angels, Calendar Stars, Palapye All Stars, Sua Flamingoes and Real Movers are the only six teams that have not played in the country’s top league. 

Also some of the northern region teams that once played in the premier league and have been relegated from first to the second division are the likes of Mosquito, which is now competing in the Selebi Phikwe Region Second Division league, TASC from Francistown  also in the regions second division league and Satmos in Selebi Phikwe regional first division while United Hotspurs, formerly Mahalapye Hotspurs, is currently competing in the regional second division. 

In random interviews with football supporters in the north, Justice Lesang said it was worrisome that teams from the north failed to maintain their status in the elite league. 

Lesang said he suspected poor management and lack of proper development structures to have impacted on the performance of teams from the north resulting in teams failing to survive the axe from the top league. 

Dorcus Gosiame said unavailability of sponsorship or financial support for the teams was one of the factors that caused the teams to fail to perform well and retain their position in the elite league. 

She also pointed out that lack of support from the community in which the teams came from has also impacted negatively on the performance of the teams in the elite league. 

“People in the north prefer supporting teams from the south rather than teams that originate in their areas,” she said. 

Another soccer fan from Selebi Phikwe, Edward Otsile said it was high time people in the north rose up and  supported teams from the north. 

He shared the same view as other soccer fans that the reason why some teams failed was due to lack of support. 

He also called on private companies that were trading in the north to play a role in supporting teams in the north in terms of sponsorship or any form of  financial support. 

Otsile also encouraged northern based teams to improve their management strategies and player development structures. He called on teams to have a well-designed approach for scouting players, not only in urban or peri urban areas, but also in rural areas in the northern region. ENDS