Nomads players press for outstanding payment

Be Forward Wanderers were forced to borrow K5 million from a fan after the players refused to check out of a lodge in Lilongwe on Monday over outstanding game bonuses.

The incident occurred barely a day after the Lali Lubani Road outfit won the Fisd Challenge Cup after beating Silver Strikers 3-2 in the final.

Instead of departing the capital city at 9am, the Nomads started off at 7pm, leading to the cancellation of a cup parade which their Lilongwe-based fans had planned.

A senior player, who asked for anonymity, said they refused to check out because their officials did not honour their promise to pay them game bonuses for 11matches after the final match.

“It is not like we were being difficult. Our bosses had promised to pay us the dues [for eight wins and a draw] from the gate revenue proceeds.

“But to our surprise, we learnt later on that the team’s gate revenue share had been paid to other debtors,” he said.

The player said it was at that point when the players decided to have an impromptu meeting where they agreed not to check out of the lodge unless they were paid their dues.

“Unfortunately when all this was happening, the officials were nowhere to be seen,” he said.

The player said it was only after some Lilongwe-based supporters learnt about the situation that they intervened.

“It was only in this evening [Monday] when we were paid part of the bonuses covering five games after a supporter sourced some money.

“It is very unfortunate that after all the effort we put in, this is what we get for a thank you and in the end, we are branded like ‘spoiled brats’. We feel they should have prioritised us players because it was a promise,” he said.

Nomads vice-general secretary Chulu Mkangama confirmed the development, but blamed the team’s treasury for the hiccup.

“I was not there because I am away, but one of our supporters secured K5 million from somewhere and we paid part of the dues. That is when the players softened up and accepted to check out of the lodge and depart for Blantyre.

“But I think it was poor planning on the part of our treasury department because much as we had an obligation to pay other debtors, priority should have been the players,” he said.

Nomads players get K35 000 each for a win, including those that come off the bench while unused substitutes get half the amount.

Usually, Nomads’ line-ups, including substitutes, consists of 17 or 18 players.