admin
Ricky Zililo Sports Reporter
HIGHLANDERS captain Innocent Mapuranga yesterday declared that his team was still in the championship race and believes today’s encounter against Monomotapa at Barbourfields Stadium will provide a turning point in their campaign.The Bulawayo giants have of late been losing the grip on the championship race and were dislodged from second place on the log to third by their perennial rivals Dynamos following their 0-1 defeat to Black Mambas in their last league match. DeMbare beat Motor Action by a similar scoreline to move up the ladder.
In an interview yesterday, the Highlanders skipper said he was aware of the growing pressure following his team’s dip in form that has seen Bosso only managing to get five points from a possible 15 in their last five outings.
Highlanders’ only win in those five matches was a 1-0 victory over Hwange in Bulawayo. Highlanders also played to draws with Caps United and Chicken Inn and lost to Caps United and Black Mambas.
Mapuranga is confident that Bosso can rediscover their winning formula and maintain their tag as strong championship contenders. He said they are hard-pressed for a victory so that they improve their confidence levels that have hit rock bottom.
“I must say the game against Monomotapa will be a turning point for Highlanders, especially us as players. We want to retain our confidence. We just cannot afford to lose this game and judging by the amount of work everyone has been putting in at training, I am confident that we will beat Monomotapa.
“The other reason why the Monomotapa game is a must-win for us is that we want to keep our championship hopes very alive and as captain it is my wish to lift the Premier Soccer League trophy at the end of the year. Any one from the top six clubs is very much in the championship race and what we need to do is make sure that we win all our remaining matches, which I think is very possible but requires hard work,” said Mapuranga.
After today’s match, Bosso will be left with 10 league games.
Highlanders who are third on the log have amassed 34 points from 19 matches and trail log leaders Harare City by four points and are just a point behind Dynamos.
Harare City and Dynamos are involved in a top of the table clash at Rufaro Stadium in Harare this afternoon and Bosso will pray hard that the two play to a draw so that in the event that Highlanders beat Monomotapa, they close the gap.
The other teams that cannot be ruled out of the championship race include fourth placed Caps United who have 32 points, ambitious Bulawayo club Chicken Inn (31) and FC Platinum on 30 points.
Mapuranga said their 0-2 loss to Caps United in a friendly match at Barbourfields a week ago was an eye-opener for them and called on their supporters to rally behind the team.
There has been a lot of disharmony within the Highlanders’ family with supporters seemingly not happy with allegations of interference by welfare manager Willard Khumalo in team selection, a charge the club denies.
Khumalo once had a successful stint at Mwana Africa leading them to an impressive run in Africa in 2007.
The allegations have been rejected by the club’s leadership which said the head coach Kelvin Kaindu had not informed them about such acts.
Pandemonium almost broke out after the 2-0 defeat to Caps United in the friendly where a certain group of supporters who were calling for the ouster of Khumalo had to be dispersed by police.
The allegations aside, the team’s performance has not been impressive at all.
Mapuranga said the players were “feeling the pressure” following their poor run and appealed to their supporters to stand by them. “I think the game of football is always a pressure game and playing for a big team like Highlanders adds on the pressure. What people should try to understand is that competition this season is much tougher than last year and we know that our supporters need results but they have to bear with us because one cannot always be in top form.
“We went through a rough patch which I believe is coming to an end and what we need at this stage is for supporters to rally behind us so that we can achieve our goal of winning the championship together,” said Mapuranga.
Today, Mapuranga is expected to lead from the back with his usual partner Dumisani “Fazo” Ndlovu while Warriors wingback Bruce Kangwa will play at left back with either Lawson Nkomo or Bruce Tshuma playing on the right side of defence.
The choice on who patrols the midfield is wide as Kaindu has Mthulisi Maphosa, Douglas Sibanda, Simon Munawa, Bhekimpilo Ncube, Hillary Madzivanyika, Peter “Rio” Moyo, national team player Masimba Mambare, Heritein Masuku, newly signed Tinashe Chipunza and Knox Mutizwa to choose from.
Milton Ncube who has had a good run with the Warriors in their last three matches is expected to lead Bosso’s attack as a supporting striker to either Gabriel Nyoni, Njabulo Ncube, Master Masitara or Beavan Chikaka.
Highlanders cannot afford to underrate Monomotapa who also have an equally good side even though they seem to be struggling sitting on position 12 with 22 points.
Monomotapa will not be pushovers and Highlanders must be wary of players like Ronald Chitiyo, Obey Mwerahari, and defender Morgan Mungombe.
They also have hard-running Kuda Musharu, Agrippa Murimba, Ishmael Lawe and Hillary Mugoniwa who are capable of causing an upset.
Fixtures
Today: Motor Action v Triangle (Motor Action Sports Club), Black Rhinos v Shabanie Mine (Rimuka), Buffaloes v Chicken Inn (Sakubva), Highlanders v Monomotapa (Barbourfields), Harare City v Dynamos (Rufaro), Hwange v FC Platinum (Colliery)
Tomorrow: How Mine v Black Mambas (Luveve), Caps United v Tripple B (National Sports Stadium)
Log
P W D L F A Pts
Harare City 19 11 5 3 28 14 38
Dynamos 19 9 8 2 25 10 35
Highlanders 19 10 4 5 28 16 34
Caps United 19 9 5 5 26 19 32
Chicken Inn 19 9 4 6 23 22 31
FC Platinum 19 8 6 5 23 18 30
How Mine 19 8 3 8 20 23 27
Shabanie Mine 19 8 3 8 20 23 27
Buffaloes 19 8 1 10 31 33 25
Black Mambas 19 8 1 10 19 25 25
Triangle 19 6 5 8 21 24 23
Monomotapa 19 6 4 9 21 30 22
Hwange 19 5 6 8 19 20 21
Black Rhinos 19 4 7 8 20 28 19
Tripple B 19 4 5 10 17 27 17
Motor Action 19 3 5 11 13 25 14
Online Reporter