adminRicky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
ARCHERS look set to end the first half of the Bulawayo Metropolitan Province Darts League firmly positioned as title favourites although defending champions Railstars will be heavily breathing on their back.
Archers stretched their unbeaten run to 13 games on Wednesday night, dispatching Wise Waters 26-13, in the process maintaining a point difference over defending champions Railstars who also won by a similar scoreline against School of Mines.
Ernest “Maphepha” Sibanda, Archers’ captain said finishing strongly will aid their title aspirations, reiterating that they want to win the championship without losing a match.
“Everyone has remained focused and the good thing is that we’re taking no prisoners. We’ve eliminated an element of complacency because we want to win this title without losing a match. We appreciate efforts made by teams who try their best to beat us but credit to my team who’ve shown that they’re real championship material and will not let anyone stand in their way to the title,” said Sibanda.
Archers’ campaign is being led by Wilfred Chitakatira and Albert Tawanda who will represent the country at the Africa Union Sports Council (AUSC) Region Five Championships set for Zambia in August.
They also have Bornface Maningi and Brian Ndlovu who have been consistent performers.
Railstars have vowed to take the fight to the wire, with their captain Charles Widzisa saying they wneed to improve their dart aggregate and close in on Archers.
He is confident that his side will beat Archers in the second round and open wide the title race.
“Archers beat us 16-23 in the first leg and I believe that if we maintain our fine run we will be able to beat them in the second half. What we must only do is to win our matches by wide margins so that our dart aggregate improves. We’re capable of beating Archers and we know that we’ve got what it takes to beat them in the second round. Right now we just want to win all our games and maintain pressure on Archers,” said Widzisa.
Railstars’ title hopes will be pinned on the quintet of Sylvester Mudekwa, Patrick Zimidzi, Ndabezinhle Ngwenya, Meli Tshuma and Mgcini Nkala.
Results
Wednesday: Archers 26-13 Wise Waters, Bellevue 15-24 Support Unit Fairbridge, How Mine 14-25 Mbizo Barracks, Khami 24-15 Maisonic, Railstars 26-13 School of Mines
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