Jawalakhel denounce ANFA's act

SOURCE: REPUBLICA

KATHMANDU, Sept 20: Samsung Jawalakhel Youth Club on Monday strongly denounced the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) leadership for barring them from participation in the San Miguel A Division Knockout Football Tournament, which was scheduled to kick off on Monday.

ANFA denied Jawalakhel participation in the tournament citing untimely registration of players against the new Players Registration Regulation, which states that a club must register players 72 hours prior to a tournament.

Jawalakhel had started the registration process on Sunday, the very day the tie-sheet draw for the tournament was made.

Following ANFA´s move, Jawalakhel had called an emergency board meeting on Monday. The meeting criticized ANFA´s act of drawing the tie-sheet 23 hours prior to the tournament and asking clubs to register players 72 hours before the tournament.

The meeting, which passed the proposal to condemn ANFA´s decision, also urged ANFA to focus on the development of football in the nation rather than on individual benefits of its top officials. The meeting also blamed ANFA for providing the format of the tournament only three days before the kickoff.

Jawalakhel General Secretary Manamohan KC said that players were unable to arrive in the capital on time as they were stranded on the highway due to landslide.
He also said another meeting to be held later would decide on the club´s participation in the first division and other knockout tournaments to be organized by ANFA later this year.

Bauddha Club, drawn against Jawalakhel in the opening match of the tournament, were declared winners on the same day.

A three-day football referee refreshers course began on Monday in the capital. Altogether 35 referees including two females are participating in the course organized with the view to bringing them up-to-date on the latest laws of the game changed by FIFA, the football governing body of the world. New FIFA referees will be selected on the basis of the course. Fitness test of the referees will also be conducted at the end of the course. Former FIFA referees Buddhi Bahadur Gurung, Surendra Shikhrakar and Pema Dolma Lama are the instructors.