WORLD CUP USA ’94 / THE FIRST ROUND : Spotlight : REFUND AT STAKE

Although the financial dispute between Cameroon’s players on one side and the country’s soccer federation and government on the other has not been resolved, the Indomitable Lions’ captain, Stephen Tataw, said after a practice Thursday that they will play today’s game in Palo Alto against Brazil.

“If we were not going to play the game tomorrow, we would not have been here training,” he said.

He then reprimanded the media, claiming that the strike threat reported after Wednesday’s practice in Moraga, Calif., was their invention. He was informed that Cameroon’s goalkeeper, Joseph-Antoine Bell, had approached reporters before the practice and, without prompting, announced that the players were considering a strike, but Tataw was in no mood for a discussion.

“Let us concentrate on Brazil,” he said.

Even though the country’s sports minister arrived with $500,000 Wednesday to pay the players, they complained that they were still owed more. Another $400,000 reportedly is en route.

Cameroon’s government is asking citizens to contribute to a fund, Coup de Coeur --Touch of the Heart--to pay the Indomitable Lions.

Even though the country is experiencing a financial crisis, Peter Essoka, who is covering the World Cup for Cameroon Radio-TV, said thousands of people have given.

“If all they can afford is 10 cents, they are giving 10 cents,” he said. “That is how much pride they have in the Indomitable Lions. If the team does not win, of course, the people might ask for their money back.”