Simba avoid TFF wrath

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Officials and supporters of Simba heaved a sigh of relief yesterday when TFF threw overboard Police FC appeal.

Dar es Salaam. Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) has thrown overboard Police Dar es Salaam team’s appeal against Simba in which the law-enforcers alleged that the Msimbazi Reds fielded an ineligible player in last week’s Azam Sports Confederation Cup.

In the appeal, Police claimed that Simba’s Novalty Lufunga was still serving a two-match suspension, and that he should have been sidelined in the match held at the Uhuru Stadium in Dar es Salaam.

The club claimed that Lufunga was red carded during the quarter-final match of the same tournament against Coastal Union of Tanga at the National Stadium last year.

Rules governing the tournament indicate that Simba could have faced the TFF wrath and probably be shown the exit door, had Police argued their case successfully.

Police, who lost 2-0 to Joseph Omog’s men, were required to follow all the laid down procedures and meet the conditions for lodging appeals. However, TFF information officer Alfred Lucas said the club flouted them. Lucas said yesterday that the tournament’s committee, whose chairman Godfrey Nyange Kaburu (also vice chairman of Simba) did not attend to avoid a conflict of interests, found that Police violated section 18, sub-section 1 and 2 which stipulates that an appeal has to be lodged in writing in a time not exceeding 72 hours after the encounter and directed to the match commissioner of TFF accompanied with a Sh300,000 fee.

Lucas said another reason for the committee to throw out the appeal was that rules governing the tournament said, the punishment of a yellow or red card issued in one season cannot be extended to the next season.

“The player, as per rules, will only serve for the red card in a particular season,” he said.

Lucas said the tournament committee had to sit yesterday and decide on the matter due to its urgency. “There was mounting pressure from different people, including journalists, who wanted to know the outcome of this appeal,” he explained.