‘Birds’ in troubled waters

BLUE Waters find themselves in an uncompromising third from the bottom spot in the Namibian premiership, a position they need to move away from this weekend, despite meeting defending champions Civics on Saturday.

The task at hand for the Walvis Bay-side at the Independence Stadium against Civics will be monumental, as the current champions are aiming to clinch the league for the third time. Both teams will go into the match with a mission to collect three points, but that depends on the form of the players on the day.Civics will be the favourites to win as they have been in good form, while they are also avoiding Oshakati City, who are in second spot to catch up with them as they are only three points adrift of them.Blue Waters cannot afford to lose the match as they lingering in the drop zone.A loss for Civics can further push Blue Waters, also known as ‘The Birds’ into the relegation zone, as they are currently sitting on a mere 19 points.In fact, Civics would want to win the league for their boss, Helmuth Scharnowski, who is currently recovering in a German hospital after undergoing heart surgery.Blue Waters will meet strugglers Friends at Rehoboth on Sunday, a match which will also be a tooth-and-nail battle as both sides will fight to keep afloat.Blue Waters, who won back-to back titles in 2003 and 2004 under Zimbabwean-born coach Shepherd Murape, have hit their lowest level this season, as most of the players failed to find form, while the level of inexperience also had an effect.Their managing director, Hendrick Dawids, recently quit the club because of outside forces and this has now left the team in waters of uncertainty.Dawids served as the financial muscle for the club over the years and was also instrumental in clinching a N$1 million one-year sponsorship deal for the club from Africa Personnel Services (APS).The team has been relying on three key players in Kulu Hawala in midfield, Armando Pedro in attack and Fisher Kalimba at the back, who are currently the only senior players left in the blue and white outfit.The trio will be expected to save the ‘Beautiful Birds’ from a tragic demise that might possibly see them doing duty in the first division if they fail to pull all stops.Blue Waters are one of the oldest football clubs in the country and being relegated to the lower division will be shameful towards their thousands of fans across the country, who over the years stood by their team.Eleven Arrows, who also found themselves in a precarious position last season, have pushed themselves up from the danger zone last weekend, by winning both their match against Ramblers and Tigers respectively.Arrows has been steered in the direction after the arrival of Lucky Shipanga, who also deserted Blue Waters as an assistant coach earlier this season.Arrows are in a favourable fourth spot on the log with a decent 25 points at this stage of the league.Arrows, who will also meet Friends and Civics at the weekend, will be expected not to be complacent as most mid-table teams are vying to finish in the top six to be in line for monetary rewards.Friends are stuck at the base of the table with 13 points and are clearly destined for relegation and are looking for a partner to join them in either Golden Bees or Blue Waters.Two teams will be relegated on May 13 when the domestic league comes to an end.There are only four matches this weekend, with Blue Waters and Eleven Arrows coming from the coast to meet Civics and Friends respectively.The reason is that all four teams have played fewer than 18 matches this season and need to catch up with the rest of the teams.Both teams will go into the match with a mission to collect three points, but that depends on the form of the players on the day.Civics will be the favourites to win as they have been in good form, while they are also avoiding Oshakati City, who are in second spot to catch up with them as they are only three points adrift of them.Blue Waters cannot afford to lose the match as they lingering in the drop zone.A loss for Civics can further push Blue Waters, also known as ‘The Birds’ into the relegation zone, as they are currently sitting on a mere 19 points.In fact, Civics would want to win the league for their boss, Helmuth Scharnowski, who is currently recovering in a German hospital after undergoing heart surgery.Blue Waters will meet strugglers Friends at Rehoboth on Sunday, a match which will also be a tooth-and-nail battle as both sides will fight to keep afloat.Blue Waters, who won back-to back titles in 2003 and 2004 under Zimbabwean-born coach Shepherd Murape, have hit their lowest level this season, as most of the players failed to find form, while the level of inexperience also had an effect.Their managing director, Hendrick Dawids, recently quit the club because of outside forces and this has now left the team in waters of uncertainty.Dawids served as the financial muscle for the club over the years and was also instrumental in clinching a N$1 million one-year sponsorship deal for the club from Africa Personnel Services (APS).The team has been relying on three key players in Kulu Hawala in midfield, Armando Pedro in attack and Fisher Kalimba at the back, who are currently the only senior players left in the blue and white outfit.The trio will be expected to save the ‘Beautiful Birds’ from a tragic demise that might possibly see them doing duty in the first division if they fail to pull all stops.Blue Waters are one of the oldest football clubs in the country and being relegated to the lower division will be shameful towards their thousands of fans across the country, who over the years stood by their team.Eleven Arrows, who also found themselves in a precarious position last season, have pushed themselves up from the danger zone last weekend, by winning both their match against Ramblers and Tigers respectively.Arrows has been steered in the direction after the arrival of Lucky Shipanga, who also deserted Blue Waters as an assistant coach earlier this season.Arrows are in a favourable fourth spot on the log with a decent 25 points at this stage of the league.Arrows, who will also meet Friends and Civics at the weekend, will be expected not to be complacent as most mid-table teams are vying to finish in the top six to be in line for monetary rewards.Friends are stuck at the base of the table with 13 points and are clearly destined for relegation and are looking for a partner to join them in either Golden Bees or Blue Waters.Two teams will be relegated on May 13 when the domestic league comes to an end.There are only four matches this weekend, with Blue Waters and Eleven Arrows coming from the coast to meet Civics and Friends respectively.The reason is that all four teams have played fewer than 18 matches this season and need to catch up with the rest of the teams.