ZIFA Eastern Region Division One has been thrown into disarray as clubs are threatening to boycott the remaining league matches over what they termed as ‘preferential treatment’ that Yadah Stars are getting from the regional football administration body following incessant biased match officiating reports as well as dubious boardroom decisions meant to benefit the team.

The Zifa Eastern Region is yet to announce their decision on the fate of the aborted match pitting Yadah Stars FC and Prime Rangers almost two weeks ago after the encounter was abandoned with four minutes of play remaining while Prime Rangers leading 1-0.

This comes barely a month after Yadah Stars became beneficiaries of a boardroom decision to award them maximum points after their match against Surrey Abattoirs was abandoned when allegations of biased match officiating resulted into a premature end to the encounter.

To date, the Zifa Eastern Region administration is dithering on their decision on the fate of the aborted encounter pitting Yadah Stars and Prime Rangers.

Zifa Eastern Region chairman Davison Muchena, who initially pledged to make public their decision by Sunday, is not coming out clean on their decision.

“I don’t think I am in a position to announce the decision now. We have made a decision after consulting widely but we have forwarded it to our lawyers at national level because we believe there are some legal implications to it. They will then look at it and then give us back to announce it by the end of day today,” said  Muchena.

As if that was enough, the Zifa Eastern Region administration have come down hard on in form Mutoko Pirates on the issue of league affiliation fees, barring them from playing their league matches just a week before Mutoko faces Yadah in one of the remaining two rounds of league matches.

Mutoko Pirates Chairperson Chido Mudzinganyama complained bitterly about the way issues involving Yadah Stars have been handled in the league.

“We all know that Yadah Stars are a Zifa child. We are contemplating to quit the league and maybe start afresh next season. Zifa told us not to play against Gutu FC last weekend because of affiliation but how many clubs in this league have not paid their affiliations fees? Are we not compelled to think that this is because they know we will face Yadah the next weekend?

“Things have not been handled fairly in our opinion. We were assaulted when we went to play Yadah Stars at their home ground and we are really not happy with their conduct,” said Mudzinganyama.

Interestingly, the league has 16 teams and according to the chairman Muchena only four have made part payments of their affiliation fees.

Correctional services outfit Tenax also added their voice in the growing chorus of discontentment in the region.

“We have been saying this all along. They (Yadah Stars) are not even from the Eastern Region. The league should allow teams strictly from Eastern Region. At least if it was a team from Marondera we could understand their inclusion in our league.

“In our one all draw, we were frustrated as we were made to wait outside the stadium for 26 minutes. The playing field was not even level in terms of officiating. We think it is not necessary for us to keep partaking in a league where winners are decided long before we play the game of the field of play,” said Tenax Vice chairman Danford Matsvai.

Buffaloes’ executive committee member Ticha Zikai said his team had seriously thought about withdrawing from the league and let Yadah Stars be crowned champions as it appears to please Zifa.

“I think this is not fair. We have had a serious meeting where we decided that we just have to withdraw from this league and start again next season. We think the promotion of Yadah Stars will be in the best interest of Zifa from what we are seeing hence we think it is of no point for us to keep competing is a league that winners are decided in the boardroom,” said Zikai.

Prime Rangers chairman Samuel Horonga, whose team is yet to learn of the fate of their aborted match against Yadah, said this experience will help them form an opinion about the way football is being run in the region.

“We are hearing through rumours that Yadah have already been awarded points and we phoned the regional administration body official who refused to confirm that. We are lucky to have gone through this experience as it will help us know the people we are dealing with better. We will surely join the rest of the clubs that have been complaining about preferential treatment of Yadah Stars.