Online Reporter
Innocent Kurira at Barbourfields Stadium
Highlanders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (0) 1
Triangle United . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
HIGHLANDERS came into Barbourfields carrying more than just matchday pressure.
After a week crippled by a salary impasse that left players downing tools and training sessions reduced to almost nothing, Bosso somehow found enough fight to drag themselves through chaos, controversy and one of the strangest delays Barbourfields has seen in years to beat Triangle United.
This was never going to be smooth.
Not after the kind of week they had endured off the field. Not after the uncertainty around whether the players, physically and mentally drained, would even produce. But when it mattered, Highlanders found grit where polish was never going to exist.
Reason Sibanda’s second-half winner settled it, eventually.
But only after a bizarre 25-minute stoppage that turned a tense Castle Lager Premier Soccer League contest into confusion, protest and raw frustration.
Sibanda stabbed home in the 64th minute after a chaotic scramble inside the box, but the goal immediately triggered furious protests from Triangle, who insisted goalkeeper Panashe Nyabunga had been fouled in the build-up.
Referee Prince Nyoni stood firm.
Triangle surrounded him. Tempers rose.
The fourth official, Mhaka Magare, was dragged in to help restore order.
Meanwhile, Nyabunga stayed down for close to 25 minutes receiving treatment as the game descended into a complete standstill.
For Highlanders, already emotionally battered by a week dominated by unpaid salaries, it was another test of patience.
For the restless Barbourfields crowd, it became torture.
The lengthy stoppage sucked rhythm out of the game and threatened to derail Bosso just when they had finally found breakthrough. Triangle eventually replaced Nyabunga with David Makure, allowing play to resume after a delay that felt endless.
Before all that madness, Bosso had actually started like a side desperate to prove their week had not broken them.
They wanted a penalty early on when Jordan Pedra appeared to handle inside the box, but Nyoni waved play on.
Mongameli Tshuma looked lively, delivering dangerous balls into the area, while Isaac Ngoma should have done better after completely missing from close range.
Highlanders were then forced into an early change when Never Rauzhi limped off, with Shelton Moyo coming on and nearly making an instant impact.
Triangle slowly grew into the contest.
Nyasha Chintuli squandered a golden chance, while Pedra also failed to make meaningful contact from a dangerous delivery.
Bosso captain Darlington Mukuli came closest before the break, his effort from a tight angle flashing across goal as Highlanders went into half-time level, showing hunger but also clear signs of rust from a disrupted week.
They returned with greater urgency.
Shelton Moyo wasted a promising free-kick, Prince Ndlovu fired wide, and then came Sibanda’s moment, a scrappy finish that matched the nature of the afternoon.
What followed was chaos.
When play finally resumed, Triangle threw everything forward, with a staggering 25 minutes added on.
But Bosso survived.
Aron Ngwenya produced a huge late save to preserve the lead, and when the final whistle eventually came, relief around Barbourfields felt heavier than celebration.
This was not pretty.
It was survival.
Highlanders coach Benjani Mwaruwari saluted his players’ resilience.
“We have been looking for this win. The boys have been playing well. I give this win to the boys. They have fought so hard. It has been a difficult week for all of us, but I am happy with the performance the boys put in. Some games have to be like this. You don’t have to play beautiful football to win games always, sometimes you have to win ugly which is what we did today,” said Mwaruwari.
Triangle coach Lloyd Chitembwe was left frustrated by the result, but not his team’s effort.
“It is disappointing to lose the game but I am happy with the performance of the boys. I am proud of the performance. Naturally a coach is not happy when they lose a game but I am happy with the performance,” said Chitembwe.
