The Fiji Football Association (Fiji FA) has made a controversial decision in favor of Bua FC, allowing them to lead Pool A of the Premier Division despite four of their players testing positive for drugs at the ongoing 2024 Inter District Championship at Churchill Park in Lautoka.
The issue emerged when Fiji FA notified Bua’s management of the positive drug tests through an email that went unread. Initially, Nasinu and Lami were declared as the qualifying teams, but the standings were later amended to include Bua, stirring discontent among other teams.
Gyan Singh, the team manager for Lami, expressed disappointment over the ruling, criticizing Bua for what he described as ignorance regarding the situation and the absence of sanctions for using ineligible players.
Anushil Kumar, the operations manager for Fiji FA, explained that the situation stemmed from a communication error and assured that future important updates would be distributed in physical form to avoid similar issues.
Bua is now set to compete against Tavua FC in the semi-finals.