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 Daily Independent Online.
* Wednesday, August 11, 2004.
Plateau State clubs on the brink of relegation
Stories
By Emeka Nwani
Senior Correspondent, Lagos
Jealousy
and in-fighting is not a good trait in one’s life. And anywhere there is
jealousy; there is usually no progress. Such is the case of the two Plateau State teams in
the Premier League.
Plateau State
has the enviable record of having two teams in the Premier League.
This has
ensured that football fans in the state always have something to cheer at
weekends. But the situation is no longer right in Jos. All the excitement
and celebration that heralded Mighty Jets promotion last year and Plateau
United survival in the Premier League has been eroded by frustration
resulting from the activities of the clubs’ supporters.
Mighty Jets
against all odds got promoted to the Premier League when better-placed
clubs found it very difficult to get near the promotion zone.
Mighty Jets
is a club that has seen and
survived the hard times. This is a side that has the peasants as
the pillars of the club. They strive to keep the club going.
They
contribute their widow’s mite to see to it that the players are happy to
give their best to the club. And they are fanatical about it. They can
travel to any part of the country to watch their darling team play. They
were in Bauchi when against all expectations, Jets defeated Wikki
Tourists.
But the
problem has been that of funds that nobody talks about salary or sign on
fees. The players are told in clear terms that they should not expect
money when playing for the club.
But after the
good performance of the team in the early part of the season, they
suddenly found out that they cannot cope with the rigours of the league
on empty stomach.
Players
hardlly collect their salaries and sign -on fees are non existent. All they pray for is to exhibit their
skills so that other clubs
will see them and sign them on. The players had before the NFA hammer fell on the team, confounded
their detractors by posting superlative performances.
But just as
they were moving up the league table, the team’s supporters felt that
match officials in their game against Kwara United were not fair and decided to take
the laws into their hand and destroyed so many things at the Rwang Pam
Stadium, Jos.
That led to
the banishment of the team to Owerri and since then, they have been stuck
at the bottom of the league table. They are just waiting for the season
to end before they begin preparation for their return to the professional league.
Plateau
United was not well supported by the Plateau State Government. But they
have been playing with poverty written all over them.
And the State
of Emergency declared in the state has not helped matters. Nobody is
talking about the team any longer. And that has further caused a slid in
the position of the team on the league table.
Plateau
United also inherited part of the problems of Mighty Jets when they were
also banished to Akure. It was in Akure that they lost some valuable
points that have put them in the precarious position which they have
found themselves.
Although they
are battling hard to find their rhythm which was manifested in their 3-0
victory over Kano Pillars
last weekend in Jos, they need to go the extra mile to remain in the Premier League.
But it seems
as if Mighty Jets are already confirmed for relegation, with Plateau
United very likely to join them. For a state with two Premier League
sides which ordinarily should have been among the top notchers, it would
be suicidal if they are relegated.
With no
financial backing from the State Government, Plateau United and Mighty
Jets may take quite a while
before they stage a come back to the premier division and that is if the
government has a change of policy towards the two teams.
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