The Sunday Mail
SOME of the decisions that come out of 53 Livingstone Avenue never cease to amaze me!
The recent decision by Zifa – as sanely argued by Zimbabwe’s Under-23 head coach, Kallisto Pasuwa – to play a friendly match against Swaziland, whom we will face soon in All-Africa Games Under-23 and African Under-23 Youth Championship qualifiers, boggles the mind.
The friendly is scheduled for Somhlolo Stadium in Mbabane on Wednesday evening.
Pasuwa’s argument is that Swaziland’s real intention is to have a closer look at our team and assess the kind of Under-23 players that we have so that they can plot against us accordingly.
How right is he!
Manabhunu further pointed out that Zifa made the same decision when they agreed to play a friendly against Tanzania shortly before we met them in a 2015 Afcon two-legged qualifier. And, yes, you do remember don’t you, what happened?
The Euro 2016 qualifiers resumed on Thursday with former world champions, Spain crashing to a 1-2 shock defeat at the hands of Slovakia whilst Sweden drew 1-1 with Russia.
Now, do you think that Spain’s coach, Vicente del Bosque or his counterparts, Jan Kozak (Slovakia), Erik Hamren (Sweden) and Fabio Capello (Russia) would have agreed to play each other before those crucial clashes? Not a chance!
Zifa have advised Pasuwa not to waste time “complaining” and carry on with the business of selecting his side because they contend that they have already agreed with the National Football Association of Swaziland to fulfil the tie.
It’s all fine to make use of the Fifa international friendly dates but shouldn’t the person or persons at Zifa House have conferred with Pasuwa and his technical team about the impending fixture right from the start?
Or is it – as alleged – a question of the “dangling carrot” offered by Swaziland – that of paying for the Young Warriors air fares, accommodation and everything else – that had Zifa scrambling over each other in accepting the invitation?
Don’t get me wrong. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with playing against a much improved Sihlangu national side but like I said, we’ll be playing against them again in more competitive ties pretty soon, won’t we?
I’m certain every soccer fan has accepted Zifa’s decision to “disband” the Warriors and kick-start the 2016 Olympics engine by making the Young Warriors take the driver’s seat. But we need to tread with caution here otherwise we might be shooting ourselves in the foot.
Let’s start seeing the fundraising ventures promised by Zifa president, Cuthbert Dube, following his re-election early this year so that we can have our own financial resources where we can have the affordability and sanity to decide and agree on pertinent opponents as we prepare for upcoming assignments.
Nevertheless, I’m sure you’ll all join me in wishing Pasuwa, Saul Chaminuka, Nation Dube and their troops all the best on Wednesday!
****
AFTER the drama-filled penalty shoot-out between Dynamos and Triangle United in the NetOne OneWallet Cup final at the National Sports Stadium last week, a lot of fans asked me to nominate my finest ever spot kick specialists!
Wow, what a request!
The following are my Top 10 penalty specialists, in a line-up headed by former Dynamos’ magician, George “Mastermind” Shaya, who was the best from the spot.
In an illustrious career spanning almost two decades, he dispatched 27 out of 28 penalty kicks. The one that “got away” was superbly saved by then Rio Tinto’s ’keeper, Laban “Kung-Fu” Kandi, in a league match between the two sides in 1979.
Kandi joined DeMbare the following season and was always jokingly reminding Shaya about his majestic save!
Here then are my finest-ever Top 10 penalty specialists:
1. George “Mastermind” Shaya (Dynamos)
2. Stanford “Stix” M’tizwa (CAPS United/Black Rhinos)
3. Moses “Razorman” Chunga (Dynamos)
4. Dumisani “Doctor” Nyoni (Highlanders)
5. James “Topsy” Robertson (Chibuku Shumba)
6. Harry Noble (Arcadia United)
7. Ashton “Ashaz” Mhlanga (Gweru United)
8. Peter “Nsukuzonke” Ndlovu (Highlanders)
9. Andrew “Mai Maria” Kadengu (Zimbabwe Saints)
10. Qadir “Chikadhan’a” Amini (Gunners/FC Platinum)
Till next week, remember to take care of your loved ones and each other. It’s bye bye for now.
Please send your feedback to: [email protected] or WhatsApp: 0714665478
