Online Reporter
Tadious Manyepo
Zimpapers Sports Hub
TAKESURE Chiragwi is excited with the prospect of facing Highlanders in the Chibuku Super Cup semi-final after the two giants were drawn to face each other yesterday.
The draw was held immediately after a feisty quarter-final clash between Scottland and Hardrock which the latter won on a 1-0 scoreline.
Hardrock will host fellow top-flight newcomers FC Hunters in the other semi -inal which will be staged on the weekend of October 31-November 1.
While there will be a lot of plots and subplots in the Hardrock/FC Hunters match, it is certainly the match up of Makepekepe and Bosso that drew instant attention during the draw.
The Green Machine completed a rare league double over Highlanders this season and they have a good opportunity to not only show it wasn’t a fluke but to reach the Chibuku Super Cup final for the first time since its return 12 years ago. “You know it’s hard to say maybe we would have wanted to face this team or that team at this stage of the competition,” said Chiragwi.
“It’s never easy to face any team that has made the semis. Being drawn against Highlanders was what was meant to be for us.
“So we take the draw. We take the match-up and we are ready for it.
“I think what matters isn’t who we are facing but how we will prepare to face who we will face.
“Highlanders is a big team, a giant for that matter just like us.
“They have won the Chibuku Super Cup before (in 2019). They know how to play in these tournaments.”
He added:
“But we also know how to carry ourselves and that is the reason why we have come all the way to the semis.
“How we prepare matters the most.
“I think we are excited about the draw and let’s see what happens when get to the bridge, when it’s time to cross it.”
Chiragwi acknowledged the fixture could be tricky, not less, after Bosso beat the very team in which he was part of the backroom coaching staff in the 2019 final.
“Like what I said, Highlanders is a big team. They are one of the best teams in terms of play even this season.
“They can never be predicted because of the respect that they carry,” added Chiragwi.
“You find that they can also say the same about us and that makes this semi-final encounter all the enticing.
“I think it will be good for football, for the sponsors, for the fans and all the other stakeholders.
“But at the end of the day what we want to achieve is clear.
“We want to win. We have failed to deliver the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title to the team. We surely have to pick out something this season.
“We are not looking at who we are playing, we will be looking at what we can do to as a team to secure our passage to the final.”
