BANYANA Banyana players should receive their long overdue match fees and daily allowances before the end of next week, says SA Football Association (Safa) spokesman Dominic Chimhavi.
This follows enquiries by SunSport after receiving complaints that Banyana players haven’t been paid their allowances for their last four matches against Cameroon and Botswana respectively.
Some players told SunSport that they had made big sacrifices since qualifying for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in order to play for their country full-time.
This has meant attending numerous training camps, which saw some forced to quit jobs, school or take unpaid leave at the beginning of the year to focus on team preparation.
Chimhavi revealed yesterday that payments were being processed and should be finalised next week.
He said: “The Cameroon trip came about suddenly and we didn’t get everything done in time. We had to capture the payments and send them for processing. We have restructured payments and are in the process of paying the players.”
Several players have complained about a lack of commitment from Safa, speaking to SunSport on condition of anonymity.
One senior player said: “I am disappointed that no one has said anything about the money. We had to make sacrifices for the team but now we are suffering.
“What are we supposed to do? We want to represent our country but this is unfair to us. Portia (Modise) used to fight for us but now no one is brave enough to do so.”
Another senior player added: “I am back home and training with my team and boys. We are waiting on Safa to tell us what is happening, as we always hear we will get paid the next week but nothing happens.
“We would like to do what the US women’s team did – go on strike – but the problem is that there are two camps – not everyone will participate.”
Another player admitted that she didn’t want to lose her place in the team and would rather not ask for too much.
“I am coping. I can’t speak for others. Maybe they should speak to the manager. They know there are procedures to be followed. I don’t want to jeopardise my place (in the team),” she said.
Banyana will train at the University of Johannesburg’s Soweto Campus today ahead of their friendly against Zimbabwe at Makhulong Stadium in Tembisa on Sunday (3pm).
