The Sunday Mail
Petros Kausiyo
Sports Editor
DYNAMOS coach Tonderai Ndiraya says fans should brace for a potentially interesting duel between two of the country’s most exciting young footballers when Bill Antonio and Calum English-Brown square off at the National Sports Stadium this afternoon.
Ndiraya’s DeMbare receive WhaWha in a Chibuku Super Cup first-round encounter, which the gaffer reckons could be a banana skin for them in their quest for honours in the premier knock-out tournament.
He might be just 44-years-old, but Ndiraya has been in the trenches long enough, both as a player and coach, to know the unpredictable nature of cup games. After all, the Chibuku Super Cup is a competition he won in 2016 when odds were heavily stacked against his Ngezi Platinum Stars side.
“WhaWha have been struggling in the league, yes, but this is a different competition altogether, and being a cup game, teams give it their all.
“No matter how small or big a team is, they give it their all on the day,’’ Ndiraya said.
Dynamos were putting more emphasis on the players’ psyche during their preparations.
They are also cognisant of the fact that it had to take a 86th-minute strike from Alex Orotomal to subdue a stubborn WhaWha in the league on April 30.
“We have really been working on the mental side of the players all week to avoid complacency. We have often struggled against the so-called small teams because of complacency issues,” he said.
“The most important thing though is for us to qualify for the next round, and how we do that doesn’t really matter.”
Dynamos also left it until late last weekend before securing a 2-0 win over Tenax deep into injury time.
They expect another difficult afternoon from a determined WhaWha.
For today’s game, fans might have an opportunity to watch some of the best talent that has emerged in the post-Covid-19 era in Antonio and English-Brown.
Ndiraya worked with both talented youngsters in the Young Warriors’ fold and has been closely following their exploits in the Premiership.
“Bill and Calum are providing a potential explosive contest, and it’s a contest the fans must brace up for,” he said.
“They contested against each other very well and gave fans something to cheer about at Ascot Stadium in Gweru in a Premier Soccer League fixture.
“The same is expected of them on Sunday. They both have speed, can dribble and can score goals as well.
“These are similar attributes which the fans can enjoy by comparing during the match.”
English-Brown, just like Antonio, has risen from academy football to light up the Premiership.
Such has been his impact at Prisons and Correctional Service outfit WhaWha that Gweru fans have nicknamed him “White Lion’’.
A Legends Football Academy prodigy, who dumped the lower leagues of Germany to return and compete in the Premiership, English-Brown is also aware that he has become the target of some opposing teams.
The 21-year-old, however, told The Sunday Mail Sport that he was focused on helping WhaWha to salvage something out of a season that has gone horribly wrong for them on their return to the top-flight.
WhaWha anchor the 18-team Premiership log standings.
But he feels it is Dynamos who will be under pressure given that they have been enjoying a purple patch and their fans are a hugely expectant lot.
“I think there is not much pressure on us to win this game … We are not expected to win and going in as underdogs, obviously a win will be a great result for us, but we can play freely without that pressure that Dynamos will be having in front of their fans, and that will be good for us,” English-Brown said.
“Our struggles in the league have been down to consistency. I think we have done well against the big teams and in big games like this one, but we have not been as consistent against the small teams.”
He also revealed his excitement at having to square off against some of the players he played with in the Young Warriors, who include Emmanuel Jalai and Antonio.
“It feels good to be playing against players that I have played with before and I wish all of them well, and I am happy that they are performing well, especially Bill, and we will see how it goes.’’
He is also not worried about having to be the focus of attention from opponents in a WhaWha outfit that has refreshingly put its confidence in a number of young players.
“I don’t think it is a bother to me (the attention); I think it’s a good sign. It means I am doing something right, so I just need to keep on playing so that I improve on my consistency and improve on areas that I can.
“It’s best to just play my game and enjoy,’’ added English-Brown.
Coach Luke Petros Jukulile has put together a side that boasts of an exciting youth brigade that includes his son Nigel, brothers Denzel and Dibbelar Mapuwa, and Jayden Bakare.
After knocking out Cranborne Bullets in the preliminary round, WhaWha have every reason to fancy their chances in this competition that is also famed for upsets.
Bosso’s Ambition
While Dynamos start as favourites, their bitter rivals and fellow giants Highlanders are trying to get the monkey off their back.
They have not been winning on the road in the Premiership over the last three years.
But in the build-up to their first-round assignment against Triangle at Gibbo this afternoon, they underlined their ambition to claim the Chibuku Super Cup they last won in 2019.
Highlanders’ Portuguese coach Baltemar Brito is aware of the tough assignment at Gibbo and told our Bulawayo Bureau that they needed to deal with Triangle first.
“The cup competition normally gives hope to every team which believes it’s possible to win it.
“We are going to Triangle thinking of passing to the next round before thinking of winning the cup,” said Brito.
“What’s important is winning this game and reaching the next round, taking it a game at a time.
“We have studied their play and shown our players the images of what we need to do.
“What we know is that they (Triangle) are a strong team that plays direct football, they are physical and play well in their smaller ground than Barbourfields.
“They have tall, speedy strikers and we are going to avoid some of the situations they do and create something for us.”
