Sulom cautions clubs on match venues usage

Super League of Malawi (Sulom) has urged clubs to desist from using match venues as training grounds to ensure that they are in good condition all the time. Sulom president Gilbert Mittawa said the overuse affects the quality of match venues. “It is sad to note that the condition of most of our match venues is only better at the start of the season.

But all this happens because most clubs take match venues as training pitches,” he told the association’s annual general meeting in Salima on Saturday. “Currently, match venues are overused, leading to wearing out of pitches even before the first round is completed. We understand that most clubs do not own the facilities, but proper use of the pitches is important.” Civil Service Sports Club chairperson James Mwenda, whose club also owns Civo Stadium in Lilongwe, concurred with Mittawa on the need to control the use of match venues.

He conceded that Civil Service United main team, reserve side and women’s team use their stadium for both matches and training, but they plan to renovate their upper ground for training sessions. “We have the upper stadium, whose main purpose is hosting training sessions, but we have not been using it. Now, we plan to put it back to good use.

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Through our development sub-committee, we are working out something to turn the upper stadium into a modern facility to minimise the pressure on our main pitch,” said Mwenda. While admitting the importance of separating match venues from training grounds, Mighty Wanderers FC chief executive officer Panganeni Ndovi said the inadequacy of football facilities in the country makes it difficult for clubs to follow the recommended procedure. “We have inadequate football infrastructure in the country and it is a struggle to secure grounds for training.

This forces us to use match venues for training sessions sometimes,” he said. “I believe it is important to pay attention to increasing the number of football facilities in the country.” Wanderers use Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre as both training ground and match venue, especially when their matches are scheduled for artificial pitches. They also use Country Club Limbe ground in Blantyre and Namikango ground in Thondwe, Zomba as alternative grounds for training sessions.

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