Highlanders has distanced itself from the calls to boycott Barbourfields Stadium on Sunday when the club faces ZPC Kariba in a Castle Lager Premiership match.
Highlanders’ chief executive officer, Sihlangu Dlodlo, said the team is training in preparation for the match.
He said the club adheres to the laws and constitution of the Premier Soccer League (PSL) and would not participate in actions that could harm the league or ZIFA. Said Dlodlo (via Chronicle):
As I speak, our boys are training for the match and are ready to entertain fans. We are not involved in calls for the boycott.
As Highlanders, we have always counted on the 12th man to help the boys deliver. The noise drives our players and we count on them this Sunday.
Our players always play to entertain fans and this Sunday is no different.
However, Dlodlo said the club cannot control the actions of its fans and that any unauthorised events organised in the club’s name will be addressed appropriately. He said:
We are not part of that. We are a formal institution and we give our members rights and obligations. We are members of the PSL where we act within the laws and constitution and we would not love to engage in unintended conflicts. We cannot be part of actions perceived to pull down the PSL and ZIFA.
Highlanders supporters have been calling for a boycott of their upcoming match in protest over the treatment of their club by the PSL and ZIFA.
Bosso fans were outraged after a controversial penalty decision during a Chibuku Super Cup quarter-final against Simba Bhora at Wadzanayi Stadium last week, which led to the abandonment of the match and the suspension of the referees.
Referee Cecil Gwezera and his assistant Zondzi Ngosana were suspended by the ZIFA Referees Committee the day after the match.
Despite Simba Bhora being the home team and the event management falling under the PSL’s jurisdiction, both Highlanders and Simba Bhora were fined US$6,000 for crowd trouble.
More: Pindula News