Online Reporter
Tinashe Kusema
Zimpapers Sports Hub
SHAUN DE SOUZA isn’t hiding. He’s hurting, but he’s fired up.
Days after a bruising 41-22 loss to Namibia that rocked the Junior Sables’ Barthes Trophy campaign, the Zimbabwe Under-20 coach has promised a “historic” response when his charges take on Tunisia this afternoon.
Haunted by déjà vu from last year’s heartbreak, the Junior Sables stumbled badly in front of their home fans at Old Hararians Sports Club, and De Souza did not mince his words after watching his side fall apart in the opening half.
Ghosts of the 2024 campaign resurfaced as individualism once again trumped teamwork, with the young Zimbabweans chasing personal glory instead of playing as a unit.
Namibia pounced on the disjointed display, racing to a 22-point lead by half-time and sealing the result with two late tries.
To their credit, Zimbabwe mounted a spirited second-half comeback with tries from Thabani Ndlovu, replacement Wayne Kunaka and Takudzwa Matsvimbo, but it was too little, too late.
That was then. This is now.
Today, the Junior Sables have a chance to reset the narrative.
And De Souza, usually reserved in his predictions, is now promising fireworks.
“We have had some time to review and reflect on that performance (against Namibia),” said De Souza.
“It was a tough encounter. You never want to focus on refereeing decisions, but a lot of calls didn’t go our way and that helped Namibia gain the upper hand.
“But it is what it is.
“We’ve analysed the game, identified what went wrong and worked hard to correct it.”
Though Tunisia are not considered in the same class as Namibia or Kenya, De Souza is taking nothing for granted.
The North Africans arrived as unknown quantities, but the Junior Sables’ technical team has since reviewed their 29-21 loss to Kenya and spotted weaknesses to exploit.
“Tunisia are always unpredictable, but we’ve done our homework,” he said.
“We’ve seen what they can do and how to counter it.
“Without giving too much away, I can say this, it will be an exciting encounter. We’re expecting a record-breaking performance.
“We owe the nation a response, and this is our moment to deliver. One for the record books.”
De Souza is, however, keeping it real.
The loss to Namibia and Kenya’s opening victory means Zimbabwe now needs help from other results to stay in the hunt for the title and a ticket to the Junior World Trophy.
And then there’s the injury list.
“The loss to Namibia is still tough to take. It’s only our second defeat in four years at the Barthes tournament.
“Last year’s final against Kenya was our first as a technical team. This one was my first loss to Namibia during my tenure.
“All we can do now is learn, regroup, and hope Kenya continues winning. It’s a round-robin, so anything can happen.
“We’ll be backing Kenya to beat Namibia tomorrow (today), then we finish the job against them on Sunday.”
The injury toll from the Namibia clash has left the Junior Sables with a few big gaps to fill.
Forward Allan Mawunga has been ruled out of the tournament after tearing ankle ligaments, while skipper Benoni Nhekairo remains sidelined and will miss today’s match. There’s still a chance he could return for the showdown with Kenya.
Centre Munangi Kamwendo is also out for the rest of the campaign with a hamstring injury.
Still, De Souza insists there’s no room for excuses. Just a mission: redeem Zimbabwe’s pride, starting this afternoon.
