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Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) has deducted three points from Mighty Blackpool after Ports Authority accused them of fielding an illegitimate player when the two played against each other in December 2022.
According to the complainant team, Ports Authority, Blackpool fielded Mohamed Alie Conteh when the two sides met on the 18th December last year.
Ports said that Conteh was a registered player for another Premier League club, Freetonians SLIFA when the two sides met.
They claimed that the player has contract with Freetonians SLIFA until 2024.
The complainant team said the player in question was registered by the Mount Aureol based club for the 2021/2022 season but abandoned the club during the second round of the League to force a transfer to Blackpool.
They added that SLIFA drew attention of the Premier League Board to the issue and the player was suspended to participate that season.
“Mighty Blackpool still went ahead and fielded the player who was still suspended and with an unresolved status,” Ports Authority said.
The Tis Tas Boys in their response to the allegation raised by the Waterfront Boys said that Conteh was a minor when he signed the contract with SLIFA.
They also said that the player before the Ports match had already played for the club 11 times and that no club raised an objection.
The Sierra Leone FA did not agree with the argument that the player was a minor after it turned out that they had no evidence to corroborate their claim.
They also agreed that it is “inexcusable and definitely not a valid defence” to cite that other clubs did not raise any objection before the Ports match.
The Sierra Leone Premier League Board said that since the player had a valid license with SLIFA. The Board concluded that Blackpool are at fault and that they blatantly contravene the rules of the game.
In tandem with the above, the Board decided to award three goals and three points to Ports Authority.
This recent decision has further dented the hopes of Blackpool in contesting for this year’s title placing them in a murkier water after failing to beat 10-man Wilberforce Strikers in the last match.
