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“We have been left with no option but to consider Rufaro Stadium and Barbourfields. Caf were adamant that they did not want the game played at Mandava Stadium,” said Muvengwa.
He said he was confident that the behind- the-scenes issues would not demoralise the players.
“We just have to psyche them up and see to it that they concentrate on playing and achieving a result,” said the platinum miners secretary.
Zifa communications boss Nicky Moyo-Dhlamini confirmed yesterday that Caf had insisted on moving the game from Mandava Stadium to another venue.
Moyo-Dlamini said the continental body wrote that it would be very difficult for match officials and El Merreikh to travel 95km from Masvingo to Zvishavane to test the playground.
She however said last year’s league runners-up FC Platinum had earlier indicated that they were prepared to charter a plane from Harare to Masvingo and another to Zvishavane but it seems they had given in to Caf’s demands and were considering moving the match to either Harare or Bulawayo.
Caf ordered FC Platinum to use an alternative venue to Mandava saying the decision followed damning reports by the referee and the
Match Commissioner who handled the FC Platinum against Green Mamba of Swaziland encounter.
Playing in Zvishavane means match officials and the visiting team would have to travel more than the prescribed 200km from the capital by road. Caf rules do not allow teams to travel beyond that distance from the airport and FC Platinum find themselves with a challenge as both Bulawayo and Harare which have international airports are more than 200km from Masvingo which has better accommodation than Zvishavane.
To overcome the problem, FC Platinum had undertaken to fly the visitors to Masvingo leaving them to drive to Zvishavane for the practice session 24 hours before kick-off, which is mandatory, and on match day as well.
Moyo-Dhlamini confirmed yesterday that FC Platinum had already paid for the team to be flown from Masvingo to Zvishavane whenever they needed to get there.
The letter written by Caf to Zifa in response to their appeal against Caf’s banning of the use of Mandava Stadium read in part… “Mr, Secretary-General, reference to your email of the 18th March 2012 regarding the venue of the match in question, we hereby repeat that since the distance from the venue to
Masvingo where the visiting team will be accommodated to Mandava Stadium is 95km, it makes it very hard for the match officials and the visiting team to test the playground.
“Hence, we would like to re-confirm Caf’s decision of the 7th and 11th March 2012 that the match shall not be played at Mandava Stadium,” wrote Caf secretary-general Hicham El Amrani.
FC Platinum were advised to change the venue and also to play future matches elsewhere. Zifa were ordered to notify the continental body within 24 hours of their receipt of the letter.
Playing away from Mandava Stadium at which the club has invested heavily in making it a Caf accepted venue means FC Platinum will not enjoy the home advantage.
In 2008 Highlanders accused some personalities at Zifa of taking money from El Merreikh to rob them of home advantage.
Their Caf Confederation tie was taken to Gwanzura Stadium despite accommodation which had been cited as the problem earlier on being made available days before the match.
Online Reporter