Sulom must not pat itself on the back

It is that season of football elections again. If you are a football journalist you realise suddenly news sources are readily available and friendly. Genuine reporters will not be fooled. Of course, it is the season of making a killing for the rotten apples in our profession. Such a shame!

Well, the Super League of Malawi (Sulom) sets the tone for this season by holding executive committee elections this March. Promises and lies are in the air.

Using a single variable of sponsorship, SuperSport recently rated the TNM Super League as the 12th best in Africa. Surely, it is such an encouraging rating never to be taken for granted.

My message to Sulom is that the challenges confronting you are so many for you to start patting yourself on the back.

This league has remained stunted for too long. Every country loses its best players to foreign leagues but when your cream flows to average Mozambique league, you should be worried. Teams are dying and bleeding. Players are getting poorer.

Sulom has been a child for a long time crawling then walking, but unable to run. This league needs a strategic plan that would translate in years to come.

A vibrant league is evident when teams match on number of games played at any stage of a season and when it is able to attract foreign players and coaches to raise standards.

Sulom is a mother body of 15 clubs, but the predictable relegation of regional premier division champions that get promoted every season justifies calls to trim the league to 12 teams. No rocket science here!

If Sulom is to grow, the rest of organs of the body must be seen to work instead of visibility being restricted to one individual.

If this stunted boy is to grow, there has to be a constitutional review to ensure that Sulom’s rank and file has footballers and coaches’ representatives. Only then will Sulom really prove that it is there for footballers.

This Sulom ought to have a commercial wing to spearhead commercialisation and strike progressive sponsorship deals. Sulom has to work towards aligning its operations with this ICT and information age. If not a website at least a facebook page won’t cost much.

Sulom has achieved something, but hey, you can do better.