CAPS Utd’s sorry tale

Ray Bande Senior Sports Reporter
IT was on a sunny Sunday afternoon, with the typical cool easterly breeze permeating the environment to set the tone for an entertaining Castle Lager Premiership tie pitting Buffaloes and CAPS United at Sakubva Stadium. With reigning Referee of the Year Brighton Chimene, together with his assistants Luxon Mhara, Shelton Mashangure and Tendai Mlambo trooping onto the field of play for the usual pre-match warm up, the crowd, which was relatively impressive judging by the regular numbers at the stadium, waiting with abated breath, could not help but get on the edges of their seats as they expected to see both teams — CAPS and Buffaloes — taking to the field of play for the warm-up rituals.

Alas, it was only the home team in sight!
The Green Machine players arrived at the match venue at 1:50pm aboard their team bus and another vehicle trailed the team bus carrying a couple of technical department members that included team manager George Gumbo, coach Mark Harrison and assistant Brenna Msiska, among others.

Apparently, they arrived without five of their players — Hardlife Zvirekwi, Stephen Makatukwa, George Nyirenda, Domnic Mukandi and Gerald Phiri.

The five, who later arrived at 3:20pm in a white Toyota double cab, were in coach Harrison’s starting line up and immediately joined their teammates in the changing rooms before the team trooped onto the pitch without warming up.

Upon the arrival of the five, irate CAPS United fans could be heard hurling insults to whoever cared to listen.
Some blamed the senior players for demanding too much at a time the club had nothing to offer financially.
Some rebuked Twine Phiri, even in his absence, for holding onto the club when he has no means to finance it.

Some, in their trademark green apparel, chose to remain aloof as they evidently wondered whether this confusion will one day be a thing of the past.

The match then started at 3:29.
As if arriving late at the match venue and in batches was enough, investigations by this reporter revealed that coach Mark Harrison, his technical department as well as the players held a brief meeting just before kick-off and agreed not to fulfil the fixture as they demanded their outstanding salaries and allowances.

In fact, they almost failed to get onto the pitch to fulfil the fixture until a well-wisher dug deep into his pocket to pay them some allowances.

The well-wisher, Allen Lifa, gave the players an undisclosed amount of money for the financially troubled Harare outfit to get onto the field of play.

The worst was still to come as it later emerged that the team had no fuel to return to their Harare base after the match and once again Lifa had to provide them with fuel for the team bus.

Confusion in the CAPS United camp even drew the attention of passers-by in Mutare’s central business district after the match around 7pm as the CAPS United players and technical staff appeared clueless without fuel to return to Harare.

When contacted for comment, Lifa confirmed that he intervened, but could not divulge much details.
“Yes, I intervened in order for the match to be played, but it is unfortunate that I cannot discuss such issues in the Press,” said Lifa.

Interestingly, it is understood that it is the same man — Lifa — who also intervened for CAPS United to fulfil their match in Bulawayo against Highlanders in recent weeks.

In as much as club owner Twine Phiri was reported to have ‘read the riot act’ to them, the players and the technical department had threatened not to play the match against Highlanders and Lifa came to the rescue.

Be that as it may, the discontent in CAPS United camp was aptly summed up by an emotional Harrison in a post-match interview.

“I guess given the circumstances that we find ourselves in, the payers did really well. I last saw these players on Wednesday when we played the midweek fixture against Hwange and we only met just before leaving Harare.

“They could not come for training as they protested against the leadership. We are owed a lot of money and one cannot just blame the players. They are doing quite well given the circumstances that they find themselves in. The financial problems that we are facing are killing the club.

“Theoretically, the club has breached my contract. Theoretically, they have breached the players’ contracts. Everyday there is problem. We are fighting fires everyday and this is madness. I seriously want to stay and help the club achieve its goals, but the situation is just not conducive,” said Harrison.