Cabinet minister Mike Henry welcomes the heightened interest in today’s Red Stripe Premier League game between his team, Clarendon-based Humble Lion and Harbour View.

Harbour View moved into the top four of the league, after a decision by the Premier League Clubs’ Association (PLCA) to deduct three points from Humble Lion’s total points standing, over the alleged use of an ineligible player, and following their 2-1 win over relegation-bound Waterhouse at Drewsland.

Humble Lion were up to then sitting in pole position for the fourth semi-final spot in the competition, when the PLCA fined the club $25,000 and deducted the three points for using 18-year-old Ricardo Dennis in a game against Portmore on January 24 on Humble Lion’s home field at Effortville in May Pen, Clarendon.

“We have lost three points we believe we should lose on the field, not in a board room,” Henry told a press briefing at his business office in downtown Kingston, last week.

Portmore United claimed Dennis was ineligible to play for Humble Lion in the game, which Humble Lion won 3-1, cushioning their fourth-place spot in the league. However, Humble Lion maintained that Dennis has not played for Portmore in five years, and had automatically become a free agent after 30 months outside of Portmore.

Portmore initially produced a document indicating that Dennis represented them in the St Catherine Under-17 tournament in 2014. But have since withdrawn that document after Humble Lion raised concerns about its legitimacy. But, despite these efforts, the PLCA has refused to withdraw the deduction of the three points and the fine for $25,000 on the club.

Anthony Pringle, a founding member of Humble Lion who took part in the briefing, noted that while they have fulfilled all necessary requirements to register Dennis, Portmore have been unable to produce any evidence that he has played for that club in 30 months.

“He last played for Portmore at U15s in 2011 and he has not played for them in five years,” Pringle insisted.

Henry, Pringle and Sheldon Holness, the manager of Humble Lion, produced copies of various correspondences surrounding the issue.

These include the fact that Portmore have withdrawn the complaint and the claim that Dennis played for that club up to 2014; that Humble Lion is the only club that has ever properly registered Dennis and ensured that he was provided with identification as a member; and that the meeting at which the decision was taken to deduct the points was held with one member of the three-man disciplinary team, Dr Winston Dawes, unaware of it.

Henry, who was only last week sworn in as the new Minister of Transportation and Mining in the JLP cabinet and is also president of Humble Lion, said that he is concerned that despite producing so much evidence that the actions taken against his club and Dennis were based on misinformation, the points remain deducted and Dennis seems unable to play any more football until next season.

“I am putting this to the court of public opinion and, if necessary, I will find an avenue to take it all the way to FIFA,” Henry said.

“Obviously the fans will not be pleased with three points gone, and this might heighten interest in the Harbour View game. But, I can’t blame my players for failing to put away three other matches, and the passion of the fans and the community is important to me. I have to make absolutely sure that I defend their rights,” Henry said.

“I am asking the public to look at the issues. Look at whether we should be penalised for three points. Dennis should be made a free agent and able to join the club of his choice and move on with his career and not be held back for the rest of the season. That would be the first step to pacifying this matter,” he added.