Bullets Reserve counted out of Super League: Ntopwa to go up

Nyasa Big Bullets have confirmed that their Reserve side will not play in the TNM Super League this season following a resolution made at a board meeting held on Wednesday at its club house.

Bullets Chief Executive Officer, Fleetwood Haiya confirmed the development in an interview, saying they would maintain the status quo of a reserve team as stipulated in FIFA club licensing, which requires any team playing in the Super League to have a reserve side and an under 20 team.

“The main line of agenda was to come up with a resolution whether the reserve team is going to play in the Super League or not. It has been resolved that our Bullets Reserve is not going to play in the TNM Super League,” Haiya said.

“We have the U-20 team whose performance measure is to supply not less than five players into the reserve team every year,” he said, adding that the reserve team will continue with its agenda of grassroots football development.

Haiya said it was the wish of the team to maintain the reserve team so that it continues to supply at least five players every year into the main team, saying: “We want to maintain this and even if it means in the next 10 years, the reserve team is winning the Premier Division, but we want to have a developmental side.”

He added that they nominated Red Lions as a replacement for Bullets Reserve but according to rules and regulations of the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) it would not be possible, instead Ntopwa FC, which finished second in the Premier League would take up the slot.

According to Ntopwa FC technical director and owner, Isaac Jomo Osman they were prepared to play in the elite league and that preparations in the league and also in Premier Division were already underway.

“FAM says that all the top three teams should be on the lookout as anything may happen along the way. We have been preparing both for the Super League and the Premier Division and we were just waiting for a final decision from Bullets,” Osman said.

Osman also said Ntopwa FC is concentrating on fulfilling the requirements for the club licensing system of which phase one and two were already done, with phase three and four yet to be fulfilled on club licensing requirements.

Bullets Reserve finished on top of the 2018 Chitetezo Mbaula Southern Region Football League with 96 points from 42 games and a superior goal difference of 90 over the second placed Ntopwa FC who tallied on points but had inferior goal difference of 52 over Bullets.

On winning the Premier Division title, Bullets Reserve automatically earned promotion into the top-flight league. This a back to back title for Bullets Reserve as they were also champions of the 2017 Masters Security SRFL Division One.

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