Online Reporter
Eddie Chikamhi
Zimpapers Sports Hub
BEFORE dawn settles in the valleys of Banket, when the air is still heavy and the silence of the small farming town hangs unbroken, one figure is already on the move.
At 4.45am, while most of his neighbours are deep in sleep, Jairos Kasondo is up, tying the laces on his worn boots.
His morning begins not with comfort, but with sweat, discipline and a silent prayer for strength.
The 26-year-old football striker has created a ritual that defines his new life as a Dynamos player.
He starts with a solo workout at Kuwadzana Stadium in the sleepy town, pushing through drills in the chilly morning air.
By the time the first light spreads across the fields, Kasondo is already boarding a bus for Harare.
The journey is relentless, 95 kilometres each way, nearly 190 kilometres every day.
It is punishing, but for him it is also sacred.
Each trip is a pilgrimage of purpose, a statement that he is willing to go the distance, literally, for his football and for a club in crisis. When Kasondo signed for Dynamos at the start of the year, there was little fanfare.
He was a quiet addition to a team in turmoil, a giant struggling with its own shadow.
Goals had dried up, confidence was fading and the once-mighty Glamour Boys had scored only six times by the halfway point of the season.
At first, Kasondo’s career at DeMbare seemed destined to drift.
Under Lloyd Chigowe and Saul Chaminuka, he barely featured. Paperwork issues delayed his debut after he lost his wallet and struggled to secure new identification documents.
For a player desperate to make his mark, the start was frustrating.
“I was well received at Dynamos,” he recalls. “I sat out the first practice match just watching and studying the environment. I played the second one.
“The coach wanted me for the Castle Challenge Cup against Simba Bhora, but I couldn’t play because of lack of documentation. I had lost my wallet when I left PAM and I could not get a new identity card on time.
“So, I had to sort out that first. But then I made my first appearance for Dynamos when I came on as a substitute against ZPC Kariba.”
His few early outings were quiet, but there was something about the way he moved, his hunger to chase lost causes, that caught the fans’ eyes. Supporters who had grown restless with the team’s lack of cutting edge began to warm up to him.
“I love the Dynamos fans because they have embraced me,” he said. “It’s not easy playing for such a team with a big followership and a rich history, but they have made it bearable.
“I’m inspired by their positive comments. Of course, there were some who say negative things. But I didn’t listen to that. The Dynamos fans cheered me on from the start. Honestly, this gives me confidence and more energy.”
The real turning point came with the arrival of Zambian coach Kelvin Kaindu.
With his infectious optimism and belief that “everything is possible by God’s grace”, Kaindu reshuffled the team and handed Kasondo a more prominent role.
Suddenly, the striker, who had been little more than a squad player, was now leading the line.
In the space of four matches, he scored twice, assisted another and won a crucial penalty.
Each contribution carried weight far beyond the numbers.
They snapped a seven-game winless streak, sparked a four-match winning run, and reignited hope in a campaign that looked doomed.
His breakout moment came at Rufaro Stadium against MWOS.
Given his first start, Kasondo bullied defenders, won a penalty and celebrated as Temptation Chiwunga buried the spot kick.
The goal not only ended a miserable drought, but also lifted the mood inside Rufaro.
Against Kwekwe United, he scored and set up another goal in a commanding 3-0 victory. Days later, he struck again in a vital 2-0 win over GreenFuel.
Each goal was celebrated like a lifeline, each assist a reminder that Dynamos still had fight left in them.
“My biggest wish is for Dynamos to survive relegation,” Kasondo said.
“That’s what I am praying for day and night. I promise to give my all so that we survive.
“Kaindu has brought some positive energy in the team. He is someone who believes that everything is possible, by God’s grace. I am also a firm believer in the power of God.”
Kaindu, for his part, sees more to come.
“He hasn’t been starting in most of the games, but now he’s our main striker and for him to score in two consecutive games shows that he’s consistent,” the coach says.
“I just hope that he keeps on his rhythm, he keeps on the strength that he’s showing in the field and maybe continue to score in each and every game that is coming.”
Kasondo’s football journey is tied to Banket’s dusty fields.
As a high school boy in 2012, he was picked up by Division Two side Omnia, coached by the late Austin Mashanda.
When Mashanda moved to Banket United, he took his young protégé with him.
Banket United earned promotion to Division One the following year, and Kasondo played five full seasons before joining PAM United in 2021, again under Mashanda.
Over those years, his instincts in front of goal never wavered.
“I believe in hard work. I was the top goalscorer at every club that I played for before coming to Dynamos,” he said.
“My main strength is just knowing where the goal is. I believe a proper striker should be someone who knows what to do when he gets the ball in scoring positions. That’s what I do. I believe in scoring goals, nothing fancy.”
His rise is a story of resilience.
The son of a domestic worker, his family relocated from Greendale to Banket when his mother’s employers left the country.
He bounced between schools, St Joseph’s in Chishawasha, St George’s in Banket and later Kuwadzana High, but football was the constant thread.
It was at Kuwadzana High School where the idea of playing professionally hardened into ambition.
Today, he remains grounded.
He still trains at the same local stadium where his career started, squeezing in drills before Banket United players arrive.
To the community, he is now a local celebrity, proof that persistence can carry someone from Banket’s fields to the bright lights of Rufaro.
Off the pitch, Kasondo is a family man.
His wife and two daughters are his anchor, the reason he endures long days and tougher nights.
His 15-year-old brother, Panashe, is an aspiring goalkeeper, and Jairos hopes his story can inspire him too.
When football is set aside, he prefers simple moments at home, away from the roar of the terraces.
Each morning, the cycle begins again — the workout in Banket, the scramble onto the Harare bus, the grind of training, the return home after dark.
It is a punishing rhythm, but Kasondo has embraced it as part of his calling.
For him, this daily pilgrimage is more than endurance. It is a promise to Dynamos, to the supporters who believe in him and to the God he prays to before every game.
DeMbare’s fight for survival remains steep.
They are still second from the bottom, still haunted by the possibility of relegation.
But in Kasondo, the Glamour Boys have found more than just a striker. They have found a man willing to bleed and sweat for the badge.
