League maneuvering causes cancellation
by Paul Reeths
Published on May 19, 2007 under National Indoor Football League (NIFL)
The Fayetteville Guard was forced to cancel Saturday night's National Indoor Football League game against the Fort Myers Tarpons, a bitter pill for the Guard to swallow. How the game came to be cancelled, and why it was rescheduled with a different opponent earlier in the week, illustrate the serious and growing problems facing the seven-year-old NIFL.
Fayetteville, one of the strongest teams in the league at 5-0, was originally scheduled to host the Marshals of Dayton, Ohio, but that all changed Wednesday. Both teams have come out publicly against NIFL leadership this season following a wave of game cancellations and questions about insurance coverage.
According to sources within the league, NIFL president Carolyn Shiver called the Marshals on Wednesday to tell them they did not need to make the trip to Fayetteville this weekend. She told them that either Greensboro or Columbia would fill in for them against the Guard. The Marshals players and staff were then informed they had the weekend off.
After allegedly checking with Columbia and Greensboro, Shiver was told that both teams had already given their players the time off, and they would not be able to assemble teams soon enough to play. She called Dayton Thursday to tell them they would have to travel after all, but they told her it was too late. Shiver then contacted the Fort Myers Tarpons, a team that had been placed on hiatus a week ago by NIFL director of operations Cleveland Gary, and asked them to make the 700-mile trip to Fayetteville.
"All the players wanted was one week's pay and a chartered bus to get us up there," said Tarpons head coach Bernard Edwards. "I talked to Carolyn, and she said, 'I'll get to work on it right away.' I heard back from her Thursday evening, and she said she was looking for busses. I didn't hear from her after 2:00 on Friday."
The 2-0 Tarpons have not been paid for either game they have played this season.
According to Edwards and a Tarpons player, the league did not provide transportation or pay for the game. Edwards added that Guard owner Richard King offered to send his team bus to Orlando to pick the Tarpons up there, but the Edwards declined because players would have had to drive 200 miles to get to the pick-up point.
For his part, Edwards did not place the blame on King.
"He tried everything in his power to make it happen," said Edwards. "As coaches and players, we're really sorry about all this. It took a toll on everybody last night. Richard King even offered to compensate some of our guys. He should be commended. I can see why they're a top-notch team."
While acknowledging that their season is probably over, the Tarpons held out hope they would be paid for the games already completed.
"Cleveland said he was working on getting them paid Friday," added Edwards. "He assured me they would be paid."
The last published NIFL schedule had 18 games slated between May 13 and May 24. All have been cancelled.
National Indoor Football League Stories from May 19, 2007
- League maneuvering causes cancellation - OSC Original by Paul Reeths
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