The Sunday Mail
FOR Cheetahs debutant Shingi Katsvere, last weekend’s Africa Cup conquest in Tunisia was much more that a tournament win, it was an exorcism.
As the hooter blurred to signal the end of the tournament and confirm the Cheetahs as champions, the 21-year-old Katsvere raised his hands up in both relief and celebration.
This was his second trip to Tunisia this year after the now infamous sojourn with the Sables three months ago.
During that trip, the hosts Tunisia employed dirty tactics to frustrate their opponents in the build up to Zimbabwe’s 14-18 Gold Cup defeat.
The Sables, who had earlier been detained for hours upon their arrival in Tunis, slept in the streets in protest against the substandard accommodation they were offered.
It was a nightmare but now Katsvere can afford to laugh about it.
“I can now safely say that I have moved on from the whole thing,” he said.
“That trip was horrible, it ruined morale within the team and was truly an experience one wouldn’t want to go through again.
“Luckily, that was not the case this time around as we were treated really well and came back with the title.”
It has been a remarkable year for Katsvere, who also made his Sables earlier this year.
“It was a real honour to be given an opportunity to put on that Cheetahs jersey.
“I made my Sables debut earlier this year, scoring two tries during our first Africa Gold Cup match against Morocco, and felt it can never get any better.
“However, I am at a loss for words now, it’s a blessing,” said Old Georgians full back.
Cheetahs coach Gilbert Nyamutsamba has been raving about Katsvere.
“We had a debutant in Shingi Katsvere and I was really impressed with how he played,” said Nyamutsamba.
“He gelled effortless into the team and scored a couple of really good tries.
“The Sevens game is slowly becoming the speedsters’ game, and with the emergence of Shingi, we now have three really fast players we can build the team around.
“The other two are Shingi Hlanguyo and Tafadzwa Chitokwindo.
“The trick is to now work on our conditioning and have at least three or four other players running at top speed.
“Once we have accomplished that, we will be able to compete at the world stage.”
Meanwhile, Nyamutsamba reckons that the Africa Cup triumph is confirmation that the team’s rebuilding programme is on the right track.
“I believe this is the most important time in our rebuilding exercise,” said the Cheetahs gaffer.
“By winning the Africa Cup we have been immediately thrust onto the big stage as we have now qualified for three World Series tournaments in Dubai, Cape Town and Hong Kong.
