By J. Burgess Carter
Published:  06 January, 2006
 

MONROVIA, January 6 -- The Liberia Basketball Federation (LBF) 2005/06 National League resumes tomorrow (Saturday), at the Sports Commission following a break for the Christmas and New Year season.

The league resumes without one of the most popular and best playing teams, NPA-Pythons. The team was recently suspended for one season and fined L$10,000 for violating an important article within the LBF constitution.

The NPA-Pythons, which is sponsored by one of the greatest supporters of basketball in the country, Mr. Jonathan Mason, on December 11, 2005, refused to honor a scheduled match in the current league against defending champions LPRC-Oilers. They accused the LBF of allowing an unscheduled oldtimers’ match which they claimed interrupted the scheduled playing time.

However, the club's officials are reported to have written a letter of appeal to the Grievance Committee of the LBF, in which they expressed willingness to pay the fine, but asked for mercy on the suspension.

A source close to the grievance committee has hinted to this paper that a decision was reached and that the executive committee of the LBF was given the option to decide on the fate of one of their biggest clubs.

“We (the Grievance Committee) still stand by and respect the ruling of the technical committee. It's now left with the executive committee to take the next course of action,” the insider begging anonymity noted.

The source also disclosed that a good number of players from different clubs within the LBF have decided to write the federation a letter of apology on behalf of their colleagues that are playing for Pythons.

The president of the LBF, Ms. Gbour Wilson and other executives of the federation could not be readily reached yesterday to speak on their next course of action. But a source who willingly confided in this paper said the letter of appeal anticipated by some clubs players have already been written and delivered to the LBF leadership yesterday.

Meanwhile, the first match of a loaded weekend brings New Georgia’s Raptors face to face with Cestos Mogars, while the second proceeding will put Mighty Barrolle against Uhuru Kings.

Sunday's first encounter will feature Commissioner girls against Phoenix. The “Yellow Boys” Invincible Eleven, which caused an off-season upset in the Oilers’ camp will again come face-to-face in what is expected to be a thriller.