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Eddie Chikamhi-Senior Sports Reporter
CAPS United chief executive officer Charlie Jones says the Harare giants will seek to incorporate club legends and former players into their Golden Jubilee celebrations as they look to put up a memorable showing on and off the pitch this year.
The Green Machine, who have been keeping a low profile in their preparations for the new season, have one eye on celebrating their milestone while looking to put the icing on the cake by excelling on the field of play.
Jones, who was a household name in the great CAPS United side of the 1980’s, nicknamed the “Cup Kings”, believes Makepekepe can ride on the Golden Jubilee milestone to recreate history.
“This is an important year for us on and off the pitch,” he told The Herald yesterday.
“It’s a good year for CAPS United because we are turning 50 years. So we are planning a huge gala to be held sometime during the year to celebrate the Golden Jubilee.
“I am very excited to be part of this milestone. Sometimes you don’t realise how time flies in life. When I joined CAPS United, it was 1980 and the club was just something like seven years old.
“At that time you couldn’t say to yourself one day this club would be celebrating a milestone such as this Golden Jubilee, but here we are.
“So it’s important to have a programme of celebrations.”
Jones said there was so much to celebrate about Makepekepe in the last 50 years. The club has won five league titles and several cup competitions. They have also produced some great players that went beyond playing for the national team in their football careers.
The Harare giants lifted their first league title back in 1979 during the days of Joel “Jubilee” Shambo, Shacky “Mr Goals” Tauro, Duncan “Ziko” Ellison, Stephen Chisango, Stanley “Sinyo” Ndunduma, Stanford “Stix” Mutizwa, Tobias Moyo, Charles “Raw Meat” Sibanda, John Louro, Dixon Ngwanya, Size Torindo, Batsirai Jambwa, Wisdom Mutemajiri, William Chikauro and Friday “Amayenge” Phiri.
CAPS United went on to claim the “Cup Kings” moniker by winning most of the tournaments in the 1980s and early ’90s.
Makepekepe’s long wait for a second league title ended in 1996 thaks to a brilliant run underthe late Steve “The Dude” Kwashi. They were powered by players such as the late Joe “Kode” Mugabe, Farai “Mr. Perfect” Mbidzo, Morgan Nkhatazo, Mpumelelo “Era Muna” Dzowa, Lloyd Chitembwe, Simon Dambaza, Dumisani “Commando” Mpofu, Edelbert Dinha, Charles Yohane, Percy “Master” Mwase, Silver “Bhonzo” Chigwenje, Frank “Dealer” Nyamukuta, George Mudiwa, Alois Bunjira, Stewart Murisa and the late Cheche Billiat.
They then won back-to-back titles in 2004 and 2005 under Charles Mhlauri. Makepekepe then had a new crop of players that included Laughter Chilembe, Cephas Chimedza, David ‘Maketo’ Sengu, Ian Bakala, Raymond Undi, Brian ‘Marcopolo’ Badza, Leonard Tsipa, Ashley Rambanepasi and Chitembwe, who is the current coach, winning the medal again.
They had another 11-year wait before their last success in 2006, with Chitembwe sealing his greatness as the only CAPS United son to win the title with the club both as player and coach.
Jones said the efforts by the successive generations needed to be celebrated. He said he was looking forward to incorporating all the former CAPS United players in the commemorations. “There is so much to celebrate. CAPS United have won so many titles and silverwares. This is a club with a culture of winning and at some point it was known as ‘the Cup Kings’ of Zimbabwe.
“As we celebrate 50 years, this is the same culture that we would want to bring back and live with forward.
“I must also say there are generations of players that passed through CAPS United and these guys all deserve to be part of historic celebrations.,” said Jones.
Makepekepe have been going on quietly with their pre-season business which began with a three-day retreat for bonding and team building exercise in Goromonzi last month.
They retained the bulk of the squad that did duty last season.
CAPS United recently announced the arrival of the midfield trio of Kelvin Madzongwe, Adrian Silla and Godknows Murrwira. Innocent Zambezi from Harare City, ex-Whawha defender Admiral Matope and goalkeeper Ashley Reyners have also joined the Green Machine.
But they are yet to test their strength in a match situation, as has been happening with some of the pre-season pace-setters like their traditional rivals Dynamos and Highlanders.
“Everything is going on well at the moment,” said Jones.
“We have started our pre-season on a positive note. The focus at the moment is on positioning ourselves as a competitive outfit.
“We would want to make sure that we have a team that can play together, create harmony among the group, get the players to fully understand the philosophy of the club and what it means to wear the CAPS United jersey.
“Of course, we would want to win the league title but we cannot talk about the league title now, when the season has not even started. The focus at the moment is on positioning ourselves as a competitive team.
“We are pre-occupied with building a team that can play together, creating harmony among the players and trying to get them to understand the philosophy of the team and what it means to play for this club.
“We have our squad in place and I am sure you are aware we have added some new players that we hope will add value to the club. These guys have not taken time to fit into the group, it’s like they were already meant to be CAPS united players.
“The depth that we have so far is good but we are not done yet with our squad. We may need to add one or two more players,” said Jones.
The Green Machine have largely been quiet on the market opting to maintain the bulk of the squad that did duty for them last season.
They have also parted ways with some of the players that include Kenneth Bulaji, Valentine Musarurwa, Marshal Machazane, Amon Kambanje, Crucial Mandaza and Beloved Musabaike. These players have been released through mutual termination.
CAPS United’s quest to cap their Golden Jubilee celebrations, however, will not be easy as the new season promises to be very competitive. Several top-flight clubs have bolstered their squads with the newly-promoted teams also being involved in the thick of things.
Online Reporter