Former Flames and MDC United defender Clement Kafwafwa has joined the debate on the Flames’ slump in form, saying there is need for a fresh consultative meeting.
Kafwafwa, who plays for Danish First Division side Lolland Falster Alliance (LFA), said this in an e-mail in reaction to earlier observations by Peter Mponda and Fischer Kondowe.
The duo blamed the Flames fall on lack of players’ transition and shrinking commitment among current players. Silver Strikers assistant coach Hellings Mwakasungula also shared the duo’s observation.
“We have to appreciate that our football is still growing and we have to make gradual decisions when selecting players for national duty. To give you an example, it took me three years before I was called for national duty and yet I was a regular at my club, MDC United. We need to first develop football at the grass roots level,” Kafwafwa wrote on Friday.
The big defender also deplored the tendency to improvise unqualified senior players as coaches and the recycling of coaches at the expense of up and coming ones.
On the way forward, Kafwafwa called for a national stakeholders’ meeting and the need for vibrant youth national teams, adding, “we should desist from looking for players when a tournament is two weeks away.”
He added: “Let us have proper structures. Yes, we may not have adequate resources financially and materially, but with proper planning and consultation, we can produce the desired results.”
Of late there has been growing debate on the Flames with coach Kinnah Phiri being against the technical adviser’s call for the squad’s reshuffle.
