Nomads taunt ‘unsponsored BB’
Mighty Be Forward Wanderers have made a pointed attack on rivals Big Bullets’ assertions that they were the first sponsorship option of the Japanese car dealers, Be Forward.
Wanderers general secretary Mike Butao also laughed off his Bullets counterpart Harold Fote’s remarks suggesting that Be Forward only settled for Nomads after failing to agree with Bullets on some terms such as colours.
Wanderers have adopted Be Forward’s orange and black colours.
While claiming that he was unwilling to be dragged into debate over the sponsorship, Butao insisted that Wanderers got the one-year deal on merit.
“It would be a waste of time on our part to be drawn into debates on why some clubs failed.
“We wrote a brilliant proposal, parts of which we are ready to share with unsponsored Super League teams, including Bullets because we wish Malawi football well,” Butao said on Friday.
With participation in 2015 CAF Champions League looming, Bullets have stepped up efforts to secure sponsorship as they need some K180 million. TNM has hinted on some help to Bullets.
Butao insisted that other clubs without sponsorship need to concentrate on perfecting their sponsorship proposals instead of poking their noses into other clubs’ affairs.
“We hope Bullets will find a sponsor and we believe that our finding sponsorship will help open doors for other clubs as well, but trashing missed opportunities might end up pushing away prospective sponsors,” said Butao.
However, Fote challenged that Dini Josaya-Banda and Super League of Malawi (Sulom) general secretary Williams Banda already laid the ground work by bringing Be Forward to Malawi through hosting of the Be Forward Tournament last year.
“Our proposal was not really about competition or outwitting Wanderers, but let them show you their correspondence with Be Forward and we will show them ours with dates indicating all. However, we have learnt from them that you can announce sponsorship and celebrate with your own fans without the sponsors and before signing a contract,” said Fote.
Wanderers announced the sponsorship in December and the deal came into effect on January 1 2015. The launch is expected this March with high-profile Be Forward officials expected to grace the occasion at a date and venue yet to be announced.
Bullets and Wanderers rivalry dates back to the 1960s when a splinter group of the Nomads players formed the People’s Team.
Then striker Yasin Osman’s shock transfer from Wanderers to Bullets at a first-ever fee even added fire to the rivalry.
