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| Sunday, 28 August 2005 |
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CR and FFSL tie-up to popularise football By Lal Gunasekera There are no outstanding payments due to the contractors of Football House, the headquarters of the Football Federation of Sri Lanka (FFSL). There was a dispute over the final payment, but after arbitration, the final payment of about Rs. 1.5 million was paid and the matter is closed now. The auditors report for 2004-05 too has been approved. Sri Lanka's soccer supreme, Manilal Fernando, who is a Vice-President of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) as well as the Development Officer of FIFA (the world governing body for soccer) for Asia, in an exclusive interview with the Sunday Observer said that FIFA promised the FFSL US Dollars 2.5 million soon after the Boxing Day tsunami for relief work, but the money has yet to be received by the FFSL. The burly Fernando said that the only monies to come direct to the FFSL soon after the tsunami was US Dollars 50,000 each from Japan and South Korea and that the FFSL distributed food and money to leagues and clubs that were affected and that there is a further sum of Rs. 2 million balance. Fernando further divulged that the US Dollars 2.5 million due from FIFA will be put to good use and the FFSL have selected 17 centres for relief work, including Matara, Beruwala, Kalutara, Colombo, Galle, Wattala, Negombo, Mannar, Jaffna, Point Petro, Mulaitivu, Kilinochchi, Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Amparai, Kandy and Badulla. He said:"The Council and Executive Committee of FFSL has approved these projects. The money from FIFA is meant only for infrastructure development and equipment and the proposal put forward by FFSL has been accepted by FIFA, and Kandy, Badulla and Colombo are areas earmarks for development. Kilinochchi and Mannar too are to be developed and has been approved by FIFA. Each centre will be allocated Rs. 15 million. "The FFSL were keen on a ground in Colombo 7 and this was the main reason that they (the FFSL) tied up with the CR & FC at Longden Place. The FFSL also are determined that CR revive soccer too. The Sugathadasa Stadium is in Grandpass. We tried every attempt to get the old Race Course for soccer, but the authorities have not obliged. There is rugby at CR for four to five months of the year only and that was one of the main reasons why we picked CR, who will not only have a ground for soccer, but a new club house too with a seating capacity for 600 spectators, two dressing rooms, bar and cafe plus parking facilities" said Fernando. He further said that the old club house at CR will remain intact. FIFA has approved FFSL's involvement at CR and have promised Rs. 15 million for this project with Fernando himself pumping in Rs. 5 million from his own funds. The contract between the CR and the FFSL will be for a period of 20 years. The FFSL are interested in having similar projects at the CH & FC at Maitland Crescent and Kandy Sports Club at Nittawela. They (the FFSL) are also keen on developing the Bogambara Stadium in Kandy and the old Race Course at Nuwara-Eliya too. For all these construction projects, it's the FIFA who signs the contracts directly with the contractors selected by Manilal Fernando as its Development Officer for Asia (Lebanon to Bhutan) and the Lankan soccer supreme will supervise them with the accounts audited by KPMG. Speaking further on the project at CR & FC, Fernando, said that the
second phase of its development at Longden Place will be for floodlights and
that the maintenance of the ground will be by both the FFSL and CR & FC with
CR's membership expected to increase gradually with more members and that
they (the FFSL) will not interfere with CR's membership. |
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