Junior Flames selection under fire

…14 players from one club, 7 from another

The Junior Flames squad has left Malawi’s football followers questioning the thinking behind Coach Enos Chatama’s selection for the COSAFA Under-20 qualifiers.

Ekhaya FC has supplied 14 players to the provisional 32-member squad, while FCB Nyasa Big Bullets has seven. Yet the entire Northern Region has only one player in the squad, triggering accusations of a selection process that appears heavily tilted towards a few clubs.

The uproar has become louder because Chatama is also the head coach of Ekhaya’s senior side.

The goalkeeping department has particularly raised eyebrows, with all three goalkeepers selected coming from Ekhaya.

“Ma goalkeeper aku Ekhaya onsewa ayaka moto? Akugwira kwambiri? Ndie kuti winayo wa main team, winayo wa Reserve, winayo U19 right?” Ken Alufisha Chinangwa asked on FAM’s Facebook page.

Another supporter, Hajj Hajj, was more blunt. “3 goalkeeper from Ekhaya 🤣 iiii ndiye you expect Malawians asayankhule,” he wrote.

But the criticism goes beyond social media banter.

Chitipa United general secretary has challenged the selectors to explain how 14 players from one club can make the squad while the Northern Region, home to several teams competing in national leagues, has only one representative.

“I question the selection rationale for the call up, given that seventeen players and all three goalkeepers hail from a single club, while only a single player has been called up from the entire Northern Region,” he said.

He questioned whether the selectors seriously assessed the talent available in the region, including players competing in the Chiwemi Investment League, FCB Under-20 League, NBS National League and FDH Premiership.

The official said the exclusion risks demoralising young players who continue to invest time and effort into the game but feel that strong performances may not be enough to earn national recognition.

The selection does not, on its own, prove favouritism or wrongdoing. However, 14 players from one club, including all three goalkeepers, is an unusually heavy concentration and has put Chatama and the selectors under the spotlight.

With the COSAFA Under-20 qualifiers scheduled for September 18 to 27 in Mozambique, the pressure is now on the technical panel to show that the squad reflects Malawi’s best young talent, rather than simply the talent closest to the selectors.