TK, if you can’t get hold of FAM then you may need to gang up with the following:

1)Blantyre Newspapers Limited
BNL steps up ‘red campaign’

2) Anna Key
In 2006 California senior goalkeeper Anna Key was named the 2006 NCAA Division I Female Sportsmanship Award winner by the NCAA Committee on Sportsmanship and Ethical Conduct (CSEC). Earlier that year, the Oakland native was selected a co-recipient of the 2005-06 Pac-10 Sportsmanship Award.

A peace and conflict studies major, Key traveled to Malawi, Africa, in May 2005 to promote the importance of staying in school and playing sports. Through her leadership, the Cal Student Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) she was looking to raise funds for sports programs in Malawi. Upon graduation, Key hoped to obtain a job in public or international policy.

Since Key’s three-week stay in Africa, she had been determined to raise money for Malawi and their national soccer teams by launching her own organization – Malawi Youth Project – which works/worked in alliance with Amnesty International. The goal of the Malawi Youth Project is/was to inspire kids across the country to get involved in assisting the youth of Malawi. Specifically, the project’s objectives are/were to raise money for the Amai Achifundo Orphan Center in Blantyre North and to gather soccer equipment and additional funds for the Malawi Football Association to develop women’s soccer throughout the country. The project aims/aimed at developing structures within the orphan center and within the Malawi Football Association that enable the leaders of such programs to create self-sustaining, flourishing organizations that will support the youth of Malawi.

If I can be of any help, shoot me an email: sscouser@gmail.com

Then, Nation Online of Malawi had quoted FAM president Walter Nyamilandu as saying that the association had a meeting with the England international on the issue.

According to Nyamilandu The Academy project would include the construction of a dormitory, classrooms, library, laboratory, dining room, equipment and at least two to three pitches and it was estimated to cost about 500,000 dollars.

Any updates?

I cited mostly the way FAM has gone about in marketing of the game in Malawi.Most Malawians in diaspora including myself have tried to reach out to FAM inorder to help raise whatever we can inorder to help our national team but all our attempts fell on deaf ears.I started a movement personally where I was going to reach out to all Malawians at home and abroad by creating a group on Facebook called “I love the flames”.The whole reason for this group was to create a base of well wishers who can show their support of the team by donating money.The response was good but as time went on most became disinterested because we did not live up to our stated agenda.I wrote FAM an email through their site notifying them of our intention as a group of supporters in diaspora but never got one single response.

If you go to FAM website you will notice that its not up to date.There is no machinery put in place to reach those of us in diaspora.The current phone numbers and email addresses are out of date.The only time we hear about FAM sourcing funds is through,our local media but we can’t reach them directly.How then,do you convience somebody to donate $20 without the blessing of FAM?Marketing structures should be put in place where Malawians in diaspora can have easy access if they so wish to donate.Representatives should be put in place outside of Malawi with FAM’s blessing to sacrifice time for the cause.Remember this is just voluntary and the association will have nothing to lose but everything to gain.I am sure over a long period a good amount can be realised and thats the money that could carter for things like Uniforms,boots allowances etc.In my opinion Fam has not yet utilised the full potential of the internet.Need I say that Barack Obama raised millions for his campaign,something no one ever thought would factor in todays politics.

It could be wrong to blame Flames coaches unless one knows the attributes they look for in players. Indeed, players should be selected on merit and not just because they are professional players. In the same vein, they shouldn’t be excluded just because they warm the bench. Sometimes warming the bench doesn’t necessarily mean that you are out of form. It could be that the team is full of stars. For example, Robbie Keane used to warm the bench at Liverpool but when he went back to Spurs he became a regular again. Eboue the Great warms the bench at Arsenal but he is in Ivory Coast’s first 11. Professional players continuously work at honing their skills. They know that if they slack off in their efforts there are always others there ready to take their places.

Logically, the new team cannot be built without having a nucleus of home-based players. But there is a serious problem at the moment as far as home players are concerned. Majority of the home-based players lack the requisite quality required of national team players. The national team is for already-made players and not to train players.

TK, Kinnah has time and again given more local players a chance to play for the national team: “I want to build a very strong local team. And as usual my philosophy is to always give players a chance to prove their worth. I will give a chance to outstanding Presidential Cup players for observation and training. I can assure you that I will include at least four or five in the squad that is currently in camp.” The local payers have to prove their worth in training. There are some that have proved their worth and are in the first 11.

Player development should start at club level. They say that strong local competitions yield strong national teams. But to have strong local professional competition we will have to wait for some years for players to become true professionals as they now know that if they want to better their lives and their incomes they will have to show their best. Showing their best will improve the game on a local level and then automatically the national team will have better prepared players whether physically or tactically. We need to improve the local competitions and know that professional players all over the world play more than one game per week. We have to have more competitions and players should be keen to improve their standards to have higher offers and thus the game will improve and progress on both a club and national team level.

I think it’s unfair to blame the current National Team Coaches and FAM for The Flames failures. I think the main problem is that we don’t have the economic strength and a system in place to develop young players. We don’t have the resources, facilities, and the professional contracts to motivate and sustain players. This needs to be done at club level.

The local clubs need to become professional and must do a better job of developing players to stop the slide of the national team into mediocrity. In the 1990’s, The FA went ahead and created a new blueprint for player development which mandated that every Premiership club must have a Youth Academy with specific requirements for staff qualifications and licensing, facilities, training, games, player ages, and supporting educational opportunities for the players. The academies are fully funded by the pro clubs. The players do not pay a cent. Could someone name one team in Malawi that has a Youth Academy.

Every Super League club must have an Academy operating according to strict
guidelines. The objective of the guidelines should be to ensure that players do not just possess high technical level, but are also schooled in proper self care, nutrition, character, and social skills. The goal should be to produce intelligent, skillful players who behave as professionals, can take care of themselves outside the soccer field and who can seamlessly adjust to normal productive life after retiring from playing.

Until we have Youth Academies in place it will be useless firing National Team Coaches and axing FAM Members. Kids are still playing barefoot. Who should buy the kids soccer boots, parents or Football Associations? There is a limit to what Football Associations can do. In Malawi it’s not only kids that don’t have soccer boots. At district level some players still play barefoot. If these barefoot players are talented should they be included in the National Team? Just a few months ago Kinnah personally donated soccer boots to a talented barefoot “National Team material” player. Seriously, the National Team is for already-made players and not to train players.

Players should indeed be selected on merit and not just because they are in professional leagues outside the country when many of them are just busy gracing the bench.It doesnt make sense for a player who hasn’t played all season long to just all of a sudden see playing time and have an impact on the team.

Kinnah should also look to another choice of goal keeper.Some of the many goals and losses can be attributed to poor goal keeping.He should try playing another goalie for all the friendlies to come.

The coach also needs to find a way of toughening these players mentally.Malawi has got skill but luck metal focus,or the swagger that is needed to win against all odds.

After all is said and done all options should be on the table.That includes the possiblity of replacing the coaching staff and a complete overhaul of FAM members.