Online Reporter
Tawanda Munthali-Zimpapers Sports Hub
THE story most people tell about Epworth is usually the same.
It is a story shaped by headlines about crime, drugs, prostitution and poverty.
It is a story that has followed the settlement for years, becoming so entrenched that many people rarely stop to consider what else exists beyond the stereotypes.
Mention Epworth in a conversation and the focus often shifts quickly to its challenges, as though an entire community can be reduced to the problems it faces.
Yet that version of Epworth tells only part of the story.
The other story unfolds every afternoon on a dusty football pitch at Kubatana Primary School.
It is a story about opportunity in a place where openings can be scarce. It is a story about young people searching for direction.
Most importantly, it is a story about Ronald Chitiyo, a footballer who found a way out and has returned to ensure others have the same chance.
For many former sportspersons, success creates distance between them and the communities that raised them.
Professional careers take people elsewhere and new responsibilities often consume their time and attention.
Chitiyo’s journey has taken him to some of the biggest stages in Zimbabwean football.
He has represented top clubs, worn the national colours and experienced the rewards the game can offer.
Instead of moving further away from his roots, he has chosen to move closer to them.
That decision sits at the heart of Stallion FC, the ZIFA Northern Region Division Two B side he established in Epworth.
What started as a football project has gradually evolved into something with a much broader purpose.
The club provides coaching and competitive football. It also offers structure, mentorship and a sense of belonging to young people growing up in a community wrestling with some difficult realities.
“When I look at these boys, I see myself,” says Chitiyo.
“Some come from difficult backgrounds. Some have lost hope. Football changed my life and now I want it to change theirs. I’m forever grateful to Enice Shadreck, who is the backbone of this project.”
His words reveal a deeper motivation than simply producing talented footballers.
Chitiyo understands the circumstances many of the boys face because they are circumstances he knows personally.
He understands how easily potential can be wasted when young people lack guidance.
He understands the dangers that exist on the streets and the difficult choices many youngsters confront daily.
More importantly, he understands the power of having someone who believes in you when life offers very few reasons to believe in yourself.
That understanding shapes the atmosphere at Stallion FC’s training sessions. The football is serious and the standards are demanding, but the lessons extend well beyond the game itself.
Chitiyo spends as much time talking about discipline, commitment and personal responsibility as he does about tactics and technique.
The values he absorbed from coaches during his own career are now being passed down to a generation facing challenges very different from those encountered on a football pitch.
The importance of that role cannot be separated from the broader realities confronting many communities across Zimbabwe.
Drug and substance abuse has become one of the country’s most pressing social concerns, with families, schools and communities increasingly searching for ways to protect young people from addiction and hopelessness. There are no easy answers to a problem of that scale, but initiatives such as Stallion FC offer something many young people desperately need, a positive environment where they feel valued, challenged and supported.
For some players, that support has already become transformative.
One of them is Nebson Masunda, who admits his life was heading in a different direction before joining the club.
“Before I joined Stallion, I spent most of my time on the streets,” he says.
“Now I have something to fight for. Coach Rooney makes us believe we can become something.”
It is a simple statement, yet it captures the project’s greatest achievement.
Many community programmes focus on resources, infrastructure or financial support. Those things matter, but belief is often overlooked.
Chitiyo cannot solve every problem facing the youngsters who arrive at training each day. He cannot eliminate poverty or remove every temptation.
What he can do is convince them that their future is not already decided by where they come from.
Parents have noticed the difference.
On many afternoons, they gather around the pitch to watch training sessions and support their children.
Their interest extends beyond football results because they have witnessed changes that cannot be measured in goals or league positions.
They see youngsters becoming more disciplined, more focused and more optimistic about their futures.
“Many young people are being destroyed by drugs in the community,” says parent Lovemore Lewis.
“What Rooney is doing is saving lives. These boys now have somewhere to belong.”
That sense of belonging may ultimately prove more valuable than any trophy Stallion FC could ever win.
Young people who feel connected to a purpose, a team and a community are often better equipped to resist the destructive influences around them.
The football pitch becomes more than a playing field. It becomes a meeting place, a classroom and, for some, a refuge.
Chitiyo’s ambitions remain significant. He wants Stallion FC to produce professional footballers and create pathways to opportunities that might otherwise remain out of reach.
He wants talented youngsters from Epworth to earn careers in the game and prove that ability can emerge from communities too often defined by their struggles.
Yet when he talks about success, it is clear his vision extends beyond football.
“If one child chooses school over drugs because of this project, if one child discovers hope because of football, then we have already won.”Those words reveal how Chitiyo measures achievement.
The true success of Stallion FC will not necessarily be determined by league tables or player transfers.
It will be found in the lives altered along the way, in the young people who choose a different path because someone invested time in them, and in the families who find reasons to believe their children can aspire to something more.
There is a certain irony in the fact that Epworth, a place often discussed through the lens of its problems, continues to produce stories of resilience and achievement.
The community has produced footballers such as Danai Bhobho, Tinashe Mazambani, Arnold Mawadza, Moses Jackson, Geoffrey Chitsumba, Anesu Jaravaza, Talent Mukwanda and Chitiyo himself.
Beyond sport, it has produced successful entrepreneurs and entertainers who have challenged assumptions about what is possible there.
Their achievements do not erase the difficulties facing the settlement, but they do offer a reminder that talent and ambition can flourish in places many people have already written off.
The social challenges that have shaped perceptions of the community for decades still exist.
Yet on this patch of ground, another reality is taking shape. Young people are being given reasons to dream, reasons to work and reasons to believe.
