admin
Robson Sharuko Senior Sports Editor
ABOUT half an hour after confirmation had been received that the King had been dethroned, and a new Mbada Diamonds Cup King will be installed this year, a small but noisy band of CAPS United fans was still celebrating on the Northern Stand at Rufaro yesterday.Almost a year to the month that the Glamour Boys had destroyed their beloved Green Machine, in an emphatic 3-0 victory in the semi-finals of the Mbada Diamonds Cup at Barbourfields, the spectacular sight of their deflated bitter rivals, nursing their wounds at Rufaro yesterday, provided an enduring image worth every song they belted out.
The party had started the moment that the outstanding Tembani Masuku stroked party poopers How Mine into a shock lead, putting the finishing touches to a move made at their training sessions and stabbing his effort into the corner after Menard Mupera had fooled the DeMbare defence from a dead ball.
But, for all the joy that followed Masuku’s goal, the CAPS United fans knew that this wasn’t yet Mission Accomplished because, for 32 games leading into this tie, Dynamos had found a way to avoid losing a match in this capital city that they both call home.
The Glamour Boys had been unbeaten at their Rufaro fortress since slumping to a shock 0-1 defeat at the hands of Harare City in June last year when substitute Quinton Masika powered Bigboy Mawiwi’s men to victory.
Sixteen months later, unfashionable How Mine, who have perfected the art of defeating the heavyweights after back-to-back wins over Highlanders in the league marathon and a home victory over Dynamos, found a way to end that lengthy unbeaten run when they bundled DeMbare from the Mbada Diamonds Cup.
Philani “Beefy” Ncube became the first coach to find the formula to beat Dynamos in the country’s flagship knockout tournament, in the 10th game of the Glamour Boys’ flirtation with this tourney, as Masuku’s goal silenced a packed Rufaro and ensured that Callisto Pasuwa would not write history as the first coach of the Glamour Boys to win the League and Cup three times on the bounce.
Nowhere was this giant-killing act embraced and celebrated with scenes so wild they would not have looked out of place on the occasions where league champions are honoured, better than in the CAPS United corner and the Green Machine fans at Rufaro yesterday, ensured that they rubbed salt into the gushing wounds of their fallen rivals.
Having won their quarter-final tie against Chicken Inn, in a classic that produced one of the games of the seasons on the domestic scene at Rufaro on Saturday, the CAPS United fans were in full voice yesterday as they threw their weight behind How Mine and supported the cause of the underdog in its battle against Goliath in the giant’s backyard.
Having suffered so much, at the hands of the old enemy in recent years in which they have failed to win a league match in the Harare Derby in four years, the CAPS United fans derived a lot of joy in just seeing their rivals on the receiving end of a beating that must have sent shockwaves around the country.
The presence of a number of their old boys — Oscar Machapa, Simba Sithole and Clive Kawinga — in the DeMbare line-up, and seeing them feel the pain of losing a big match in the capital for the first time since crossing the Great Divide to move to the Glamour Boys, only made this result taste sweeter for the Green Machine fans.
That’s why they cheered How Mine goalkeeper Ephraim Mazarura, when he came out to guard the northern goal in the second half, sending him the message that they were together in this battle against this dominant bull that had terrorised the kraal, without much of an opposition, in the past two years.
But they reserved their best for last, when their beaten bitter rivals lay sprawling on the turf, shocked by a result that few saw coming and surprised by a performance so lifeless it would certainly not have won them this game even against lower league side Karoi United, and they danced, mocked the ousted holders and sang as if their team had just won a major trophy.
Of course, the elimination of the holders removes one potential huge hurdle in CAPS United’s quest to win the Mbada Diamonds Cup and, in the case of the Green Machine of late, there is no hurdle that is more difficult to scale than the one that is erected by the Glamour Boys — whether it’s in a league match or in a knockout tournament.
But this was not just an ordinary loss. This was seeing a Dynamos team lose, for the first time in the capital, in 33 matches spread over a period of 16 months.
This was watching a DeMbare team lose, for the first time at Rufaro, in 27 matches since that loss against Harare City in June last year.
A team from outside the capital, coming to Rufaro and beating Dynamos, was something that hadn’t happened since October 2010 when Hwange arrived to find a Glamour Boys camp in turmoil, reeling from a rebellion in which the players wanted the leadership headed by Harare business executive Farai Munetsi out of office, and pulled off a shock 1-0 win.
Big leftback, Khumbulani Banda, was part of that Hwange team and played a hand in the priceless goal when his powerful shot was parried back into play by ‘keeper Washington Arubi and Rodwell Chinyengetere reacted to stab the rebound home.
It’s something that hasn’t happened, frequently at Rufaro in recent years and for that DeMbare team to fall, in that match, it also needed defensive pillar Guthrie Zhokinyi to miss a very late penalty.
Banda was part of the How Mine side yesterday and played his part, in a team featuring a number of veterans who all contributed a lot to the cause of their team, as the visitors dominated the crucial midfield department and were full value for their victory.
DeMbare have been struggling of late, they needed a late scrambled goal to beat Tripple B in the first round and their performance yesterday was typical of the lifeless shows they have dished out in recent matches and they struggled to break down a well-organised and experienced How Mine team.
The Glamour Boys’ cause wasn’t helped by a crippled midfield, which created nothing all day, and the people’s team’s poor run has coincided with the stunning loss of form by their captain, Tawanda Muparati, who has been a shadow of himself in recent matches and, without his leadership, they have struggled to find the light.
Simba Sithole was given a place in the starting XI, which was expected given the way DeMbare have struggled in that department, but the service was poor to him with very little coming from the flanks.
It was the other Simba Sithole, playing for the visitors, who caught the eye with his energy, force and impressive runs off the ball, keeping the Dynamos defence on their toes all afternoon, until Ncube decided to rest him late in the game after a good day’s shift.
Mupera, voted man-of-the-match, dominated the midfield with his work-rate and his tough approach, and showed once again that there is value in the veterans who have seen it all in this game.
“I think the guys were fired-up, it comes with playing against Dynamos, the big crowd, their status, and everyone wants to do their best and you could see that everyone was putting an extra effort and I think we deserved to win this game,” said Mupera.
The CAPS United fans were still singing, as Mupera spoke, proving the soundtrack for this giant-killing act. And they were still dancing, providing the colourful sights, to an occasion that little How Mine will remember for a very long time, and mighty Dynamos will want to forget in a hurry.
What an afternoon.
Online Reporter