Chronicle Editor
Innocent Kurira, Sports Reporter
CHICKEN Inn are in the driving seat at the halfway mark of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League, but coach Joey Antipas is fully aware that there is no time to rest.
The PSL has taken a two-week break after the conclusion of match day 17 at the weekend and will resume on June 25.
This is the second time this season that the PSL has taken a break following a two-month break to allow the Warriors to participate in the 2021 Afcon.
Antipas is fully aware that the break is just for the players to recharge their batteries and not relax.
“We are on top at mid-season which is great.
I will say so far so good.
However, there is still a lot of work to do and a long way to go.
It’s good for us to be on top, but we cannot rest.
We have to keep pushing and keep working to try and achieve what we want in this campaign,” said Antipas.
“I think we did well in the first half of the season and we put up some good performances in some matches and I think there are a few things that we have to work on.
I feel we deserve to be on top, but we need to be more consistent and win our home games.
Once we are able to do that, we will become the team to beat.”
The Gamecocks lead the league table with 35 points from the 17 games.
They are a point ahead of second-placed Dynamos.
At some point it seemed the race was going to be a two-horse race, but owing to the inconsistencies of Chicken Inn and Dynamos, defending champions FC Platinum are now fancying their chances of defending the title as they are just four points behind the leaders.
FC Platinum are likely to get three points for their abandoned match against Highlanders at Mandava Stadium and that will place them level on points with Dynamos.
But coach Norman Mapeza refused to place his side in the title matrix after their weekend win over Cranborne Bullets.
“We are not looking much at the log standings and our position.
We just need to keep working hard as our current team is work in progress.
This team is not the same as the one I had two or three seasons ago, so we are still rebuilding.
The boys are putting in the effort and at the moment it is all about grinding results,” said Mapeza.
On the opposite end of the table, Whawha have 12 points, but remain only two wins away from the safety zone.
In the first half of the season, Whawha were able to claim some big scalps and stunned Ngezi Platinum Stars just this past weekend.
They were also responsible for Chicken Inn’s biggest loss this season, thrashing them 3-0 at Ascot Stadium.
Whawha are in the relegation fight together with Bulawayo City, Cranborne Bullets and ZPC Kariba.
Results
Caps United 0-3 Dynamos, Highlanders 1-0 Harare City, Manica Diamonds 1-0 Tenax, Triangle United 0-1 Chicken Inn, Whawha 1-0 Ngezi Platinum,Herentals 0-0 ZPC Kariba, Bulawayo City 0-0 Black Rhinos, Cranborne Bullets 0-1 FC Platinum— @innocentskizoe
Online Reporter