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Dynamos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (0) 1
Motor Action . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0FOR those who believe in superstition, a bottle filled with urine that was thrown by a Dynamos fan from the northern stands and later kicked by Washington Pakamisa past the Motor Action goal line did the trick in this Castle Lager Premiership match at Rufaro yesterday.
And for those who believe in the same juju mentality, the water sprinkled by Dynamos team manager Richard Chihoro unlocked the Mighty Bulls defence late in the second half.
For those who are shrewd tacticians like Callisto Pasuwa, their persistent pressure paid off while Joey Antipas says his charges had a lapse in concentration to concede the goal almost at the death of time.
But for lanky defender Sydney Linyama, he believed in himself and was feeling good as soon as he woke up in the morning.
Linyama made a comedy in the 64th minute when he wanted to enter the fray from the bench, wearing Boban Ziruntusa’s shirt number 20 and had to be reprimanded by Pasuwa before he took his number 6 jersey.
But at the end of the day, the former Chicken Inn defender was the hero for the Glamour Boys as he used his height to advantage to head the ball past midget goalkeeper Itai Chiwara in the 88th minute to snatch three points for his team from the jaws of a draw.
Motor Action’s Wisdom Mutasa, son to FC Platinum coach Lloyd Mutasa, conceded a silly free kick inside the centre circle when he tugged Tawanda Muparati’s jersey and the referee was spot on to blow for a foul.
With time ticking away and the match seemingly heading for a draw, Dynamos pushed every man in the box and goalkeeper George Chigova whipped a high ball that found Linyama on the right to head home.
A few minutes before the goal, a Dynamos fan in the northern terraces had thrown a bottle filled with urine-like substance towards Chiwara and as if to get rid of the missile, Pakamisa kicked it past the goalline into the back of the net, an incident the Harare giants will be in trouble for.
On the Dynamos bench, team manager Chihoro was also playing similar mind games when he sprinkled some water on the field and their psychological battle seemed to have won when Linyama scored his first goal for Dynamos.
“When I was sitting on the bench, I told the other guys that I should be able to score if given a chance to play.
“I feel very happy to score my debut goal for Dynamos but I have to work hard and score more,” said Linyama.
Linyama said he made a huge gamble that paid off when he left his position in the heart of defence and went into an attacking position.
“At Chicken Inn, I played as a defensive linkman, so I used to venture forward a bit. So I was very comfortable in the box and I know the tricks.
“When I went in, the coach told me to cover the defence because Auga (Augustine Mbara) had been pulled out and Thomas (Magorimbo) was supposed to play at leftback so that we maintain shape.
“But deep down I had a strong feeling that I was going to score. I had the good feeling since morning,” said Linyama.
The defeat left Motor Action still searching for survival clues from a tie some neutrals believe they deserved at least a point for their efforts.
Motor Action congested their midfield and gave Dynamos little breathing space such that even Warriors linkman Devon Chafa was completely out of the game and lasted 30 minutes before he was pulled out.
Dynamos tried to carve open the basement side from the wings where giant Oscar Machapa weighed in with a number of crosses that were, however, wasted by Pakamisa and Patrick Khumbula.
With more precision, Pakamisa could have converted more than three chances while the returning Benjamin Marere never showed his full potential.
It was the first game for Dynamos since they parted ways with assistant coach Tonderayi Ndiraya after his fallout with Pasuwa who reckoned some of his players had underrated the threat posed by Motor Action because the Mighty Bulls are threatened with relegation.
“I told the guys to change their attitude when we are playing teams that are at the bottom of the log. I reminded them about the game in which we lost to Buffaloes because we had carried a negative attitude.
“But the good part of it today was that they managed to get the three points,” said Pasuwa.
Dynamos are now on 35 points, three shy of Harare City and have dislodged Highlanders from second place on the log. Bosso fell to a 1-0 defeat to police side Black Mambas in another match across town yesterday.
“The three points are a very good motivation for us because we wanted the points to close the gap on the log leaders.
“We are saying there is no more small team in our league and for us to play thinking that they are at the bottom of the log is very dangerous,” said Pasuwa.
Motor Action’s Antipas was pleased that his rookies gave a hearty performance although he knows it’s still an uphill task to escape relegation.
Before the match, Antipas had warned Dynamos that they were going to give a big fight, of which they did.
“It was unfortunate that the ball rolled into our net and I could say we lacked concentration at the back.
“We did not deal with that high ball but going forward I think we are okay and we should come up with some surprises.
“The guys put up a hearty performance and they gave as much as they got,” said Antipas.
Teams
Dynamos: G. Chigova, O. Machapa, A. Mbara (S. Linyama 64th minute), P. Jaure, G. Bello, D. Chafa (B. Marere 30th minute), R. Madamombe, T. Magorimbo, T. Muparati, P. Kumbula (F. Mupasiri 71st minute), W. Pakamisa
Motor Action: I. Chiwara, C. Dhuwa (W. Musona 46th minute), C. Sibanda, D. Walaza, W. Mutasa, C. Kwaramba, Y. Ebabali, G. Moyo, N. Maviri (T. Mandirunga 88th minute), T. Mukahlera (S. Hadebe 74th minute), P. Benard
Online Reporter
derick.khumalo