Another year, another soccer tournament and another storm on the soccer fields of Fiji.
Each time the storm strikes, it is more intense and damaging. And each strike tells of more dark clouds looming over the Knolly St headquarters of Fiji FA.
Let’s look at some developments that have continued to outrage the soccer loving public again and again.
Development one: Lautoka not too long ago thrashed Ba 7-0, a scoreline that took Lautoka more than 30 years to repeat. What was more interesting was that virtually the same Ba team had beaten Lautoka 2-0 two weeks earlier. The only difference was that in the first game Ba was in contention of the CvC titles; in the second, they were dumped by Navua.
Lautoka needed to win by at least four goals to dump Navua from winning the title, but a 4-0 or 5-0 scoreline would have been too obvious so it had to be something less obvious – something bigger.
Amazingly, after the game, Fiji soccer’s head denied that there was a fixed-match. How did Dr Sahu Khan deny so confidently that there was no “deal behind his back”? Did he expect Ba and Lautoka to call him to mediate an off-the-field deal?
Ba soccer has same strong following as rugby has in Nadroga. However, no current or past Ba officials raised their voice on this rugby scoreline against Ba until much later.
Interestingly, the interim government is now doing what should have been the job of the Fiji FA – investigating this whole Ba-Lautoka game saga.
Development two: Many believe that Fiji’s soccer awards night was a farce.
Navua team won six soccer titles against Lautoka’s one. Navua had no player misbehaviour problems, no officials or coaches were fired and the entire officials and players clicked as a well greased machine throughout the year. Lautoka’s achievements off-the field were the opposite as mentioned later in this report. Fiji FA’s verdict: Lautoka was the team of the year.
Fiji FA’s administrator of the year is a person who had to sack the only coach who guided Lautoka to its first ever qualification into the O’ League. His VP had to be fired and several leading players banned for discipline, both on and off the field.
A number of hirings and firings were done well under a camouflage.
Challenging him for this award was a credible soccer leader, who in his term spanning almost a decade if not more, had virtually not fired any coaches, officials and players; had taken his club from virtually infancy in premiership to the current undisputed soccer kings. For Fiji FA, he wasn’t good enough.
Referees have a legitimate body governing its members, yet they were bypassed.
This resulted in the referee of the year award given to someone who did not have support from his own referees’ association. He had not even controlled a single final of a major tournament. Even controversies of his decision making arose in local (Lautoka’s) leagues games (FT Feb 9, 2010).
Development three: The sorry state of the Fiji FA’s finance.
Navua, who won second prize in the National League in 2009, were not paid by the Fiji FA immediately because they had no money.
But isn’t the prize money supposed to be paid by the sponsors and not from Fiji FA’s coffers? How did this situation arise? Had the sponsor reneged his legal and contractual obligations and run away?
The prize money we are talking about wasn’t tens of thousands of dollars: it was $4000. The payment was eventually made after Navua threatened to boycott their National League games.
Another damning development now is a confession by a member of FFA’s Finance Committee that all is not well on the financial front.
For a business executive and a financial controller to say that “my conscience doesn’t allow me to continue like this . . . kindly accept this as my resignation” (Fiji Times Feb 17, .2010) warrants immediate investigation.
Hopefully, once again the interim government may come to Dr Khan’s rescue and do this job, in the process saving him the hassles of investigating his own comrades.
The “selective approach”, as this gentleman has put is a syndrome that to a lay person means “give them to approve what is within the books and we will approve the rest”. Dig the graves of many demised businesses and institutions and you will find this policy overly used.
The management style within Fiji FA’s ranks is all but too obvious. “As long as you pat my back, you are the hero” appears to be the ongoing measuring stick of Fiji FA.
The Raymond Stoddard saga during the IDC championship few years ago clearly depicted this. One year he was Fiji FA’s one of the best commentator; the next, he was not only in their black books but kicked out of the championship for speaking out against the organization.
The Gonzales saga last year still lingers in every soccer fan’s mind.
Gonzales became the longest serving expatriate coach of recent times. He was also the one with the worst results. Others, with much better results than his were kicked out by Dr Sahu Khan and his team, but he wasn’t. He eventually got the boot, but not before public outcry.
Over the years, numerous players, district officials, media (and soccer fans, who pay their way-in to watch soccer) who have asked for transparency from the soccer bosses, have been disciplined. Major sponsors have been ill-treated.
After most public outbursts by leading soccer personalities, Dr Khan, a lawyer by profession has sued them (or so he has said) for defamation of character.
He may have miserably failed as Fiji soccer’s head, let’s hope succeeds in these cases. I hope the media will keep us posted on this.
Many people may not have figured this out, but one thing consistent within the Fiji FA’s decision makers is their inconsistencies.
Some years ago when the Fiji FA was searching for land in Nadi / Lautoka corridor to construct a soccer academy, I had placed a bet with one of my colleagues that the academy would be built in Ba. I won but am still waiting for my prize.
Recently, I again bet with my colleague that the proposed academy in Nasinu will not materialise as FIFA’s funding would lapse. Of course we will blame Nasinu Land Co-op, or find another scapegoat, instead of looking for another piece of land.
As it was in the Nadi / Lautoka area, where no suitable land was available for FFA, there will not be any other land available between Nausori – Suva; and we the soccer loving people will accept this.
So much has been said about soccer standards in Fiji yet, we the soccer fans, both within and abroad continue to accept the status quo.
When Australia was part of Oceania, Fiji were mostly third best in the region, after Australia, and New Zealand.
When Australia announced its departure from Oceania, there was a cry from Knolly St office that now we had a good chance to qualify for the bigger games, beyond the South Pacific Games.
After almost eight years since Australia’s departure, we are still third best in the region.
The recent FIFA ranking places Fiji at 129 compared with New Zealand at 79. A few years ago, the difference between the two teams was less than 15 points.
Within the FFA elites, our world soccer ranking doesn’t seem to matter nor does country’s soccer dreams. What appears to be important is one person’s cherished dreams of becoming the longest serving president of Fiji soccer.
Dr Sahu Khan has recently said that he “will vacate the chair if those people who voted him into the office say so”. May I ask Dr Khan who had voted for him in the last election?
No votes were cast. The chair was handed to him on a technicality against an aspiring and capable candidate.
Some years ago Vanuatu soccer was plagued with syndromes similar to Fiji’s. Of course, at that time Fiji used to hammer Vanuatu with scorelines similar of rugby.
The disappointed soccer loving people of Vanuatu got so fed up that they virtually revolted, forced the officials to resign and brought about wholesale changes within the nation’s soccer administration.
As expected, Vanuatu was suspended from the world soccer family. However, within a few years, Vanuatu soccer bounced back and was accepted in the FIFA family.
The result – Fiji now gets hammered by Vanuatu.
The soccer loving people of Fiji need to wake up. Fiji soccer doesn’t just need improvements now; it is too late for that. Its needs a revolution.
The storm persisting among the soccer loving fans is all set to blow through the Fiji soccer like never before. Will it blow away those who have become a hindrance to the development of the game in the country, or will it destroy the beautiful game itself, remains to be seen.
However, this time it is not in the hands of the soccer president or the district club officials. It is in the hands of the soccer public.
The cyclone blowing through the Fiji soccer must intensify through the public support. The interim government has commenced the job and it must be finished.
The light beckons at the end of the tunnel, albeit faintly.
* Satendra Kumar is a former president of Davuilevu II Soccer Club, Rewa. He is now based in Auckland, New Zealand