New role for Madinda

FOLLOWING the appointment of Agent Sawu as Highlanders’ new second assistant coach, club legend Madinda Ndlovu has assumed a new role with the Bulawayo giants.

After Sawu took over the only remaining spot as Highlanders new assistant coach, it meant that Ndlovu had to be assigned a new position and he has since been named as the new Club Sporting Director.

In his new role, Ndlovu, who was affectionately known as “Khathazile” during his playing days will embody the club’s culture and values, oversee strategic plans and provide guidance for the club.

He will also manage club scouts and the technical staff of all teams, and serve as the custodian of the club’s philosophy.

Boasting as one of the Bosso sons, his boyhood club has since wished him well in the new leaf that he has turned over with them.

“We are delighted to announce the appointment of Madinda Ndlovu as the Club’s Sporting Director. We wish him the best in his new role,” read part of the statement from Highlanders.

Before his latest appointment, Madinda has been serving as assistant coach to Baltermar Brito whose contract was not renewed after its expiration on December 31, 2023.

Ndlovu joined Highlanders juniors in the late 1970s making his debut in 1979 in the senior team when it played in the National Professional Soccer League South Zone League.

He would be loaned to Monarch to get game time before returning to the first team at the instigation of former Vice-President Joshua Nkomo who was impressed by Khathazile’s pace and wing artistry while playing for the reserve team when Bosso toured Zambia in August of 1980.

Ndlovu was the first Bosso player to be called up to the national Under-20 side and would for the next four years be part and parcel of some of the most stand-out players of the 1980s decade.

He made his senior national team debut in 1981 and was a regular call-up till 1988.

He left for Germany in 1989 and returned two years later to find his kid brothers Adam and Peter big national team hits and was able to play alongside them in the national team in 1993.

They made history as the first trio of siblings to line up in one team in national colours.

As player assistant coach he won the 1993 league championship before venturing into a successful coaching career, especially in Botswana where he won championships.

After suffering from a stroke in 2019, Madinda returned home and was last year appointed the link between the juniors and senior team. Before that, he was junior development boss and stepped into the first team framework when Baltemar Brito was not available and there was a need for a quick Caf A Licence solution provider.

The appointment was long overdue. For a long time, the board and executive lacked the technical brain to supervise the implantation of the club’s playing philosophy which for decades had been open attacking and exciting football.

His arrival and that of his former winger Kelvin Kaindu and Warriors teammate should excite fans as all three were very good forwards during their days.

Ndlovu has been an integral part of the Highlanders family and has been tipped to excel at his new role, following his successful stints as a player and coach.

He is arguably Bosso’s Player of the 1981-90 Decade, a true club hero who risked life and limb to make Bosso great after Independence.

Ndlovu appeared on the Soccer Star of the Year calendar on four occasions – @brandon_malvin
(Additional reporting by Lovemore Dube, Sports Hub Co-ordinator, Bulawayo).