Last update - 00:00 12/03/2007
Basketball / Ed Cota at the end of his tether at Hapoel J'lem
By Vered Cohen
Ed Cota is nearing the end of his tether. Hapoel Jerusalem's Panamanian playmaker has been relegated to the bench by coach Dan Shamir and relations between the two have boiled over into open animosity.
The straw that broke the camel's back for Cota was last week's Premier League encounter with Bnei Hasharon, when he watched from the bench as the team dropped a 20-point lead in the final quarter before eventually hanging on for a win.
Yesterday Cota broke his silence in an interview with Haaretz.
"I'm frustrated about the number of minutes I'm getting at Hapoel," Cota said. I played 30 minutes in all the important games, and in others I'm playing only five minutes. The coach has his reasons, but I can't figure it out."
Cota tried to get an explanation out of Shamir during last Sunday's game against Bnei Hasharon, but he failed to receive an answer as the conversation between the two overheated.
"I didn't think it was fair that in the last three games I played only five minutes, but I didn't get an answer out of Shamir," Cota said.
During Saturday night's win against Givat Shmuel, Cota played six minutes in which he failed to shine and soon found himself back on the bench.
"We still haven't found the right slot for Cota to make a contribution," Shamir said after the game. "Can I say that I'm satisfied with his output? Not often. I hope that in the future he will make a contribution."
Despite his situation, Cota has no plans of leaving just yet. "I think the situation will improve and I will be able to play in my position and help the team like I know how. If things don't improve. I don't know. I guess I'll have to weigh my steps."
Hapoel, however, may already be weighing its own steps. Sources at the club say Cota could be waived and have named Horace Jenkins - who played at Malha last season - as a possible replacement.
Whether Jenkins makes a return to Hapoel remains to be seen, but Cota might not be at Malha for much longer.