adminEddie Chikamhi and Petros Kausiyo
DEFENDING champions Dynamos have been boosted by the return of some key players from injury as they look to continue on a good path tomorrow in a Premiership match against Hwange.
The team’s technical department was in high spirits yesterday with indications that striker Anesu Gondo and midfielder Tafadzwa Rusike could be available for selection.
The Harare giants have been tormented by injuries since the beginning of the season but a ray of hope is beginning to filter through as one of the long-term injury worries Tawanda Muparati has since started training and look set to be included in an enlarged squad of 23 players that leaves for the Colliery this morning.
DeMbare also welcome Stephen Alimenda who missed last week’s 1-0 win at home against Triangle through suspension.
A good run of three wins in their last three matches have kept them on good footing in the race and assistant coach Tichaona Diya yesterday said the return of the players will certainly boost competition for places.
“We have had a good preparation and we are happy most of our players like Tafadzwa, Gondo and Tawanda are back in training.
“So we are going to carry a squad of 23 players to Hwange. But tomorrow (today) we will take them through further assessment because we only want to field those that are 100 percent fit.
“We have set our targets as a team and our prime target as of now is to collect maximum points in Hwange and we are ready for that.
“It was showing here at training and with some players returning from injuries, the level of competition is very high. It’s a healthy situation to us the technical team although at the same time it gives headache in terms of selecting the final 11,” said Diya.
However, midfielder Devon Chafa might have to endure another week on the sidelines after doctors recommended that he takes more time off to allow his ankle to heal.
DeMbare are coming from a run of identical 1-0 wins in their last three outings and the technical team remain positive despite their team’s suspicious performances.
Apart from the diminutive Ronald Chitiyo, the rest of the Glamour Boys Diya were off colour in their last game against Triangle at the National Sports Stadium, as the strikers took turns to miss a string of good chances.
Diya said they have been working hard on their finishing and are expecting improvements tomorrow.
Dynamos and Hwange have built up strong rivalries in recent years and wounds from last year’s 4-2 defeat at the Colliery which almost derailed the Glamour Boys’ march to the championship are still fresh.
“In terms of our preparation we are happy. The attitude towards training was okay and we have been talking to the players the whole week reminding them that last time that the last time when we went to Hwange we lost by four goals.
“So we don’t want a repeat of that. The trip to Hwange is a long journey and we can’t go there to play for defeat.
“We stressed that this game should be a demonstration of the character of people who want to win the championship.
“Although it’s still early to talk about the title, this is one game we have to collect three points as a turning point considering how we have been playing and how Hwange also have fared this season.
“That is where character comes in,” said Diya.
Hwange have had a decent run this season and are currently in third place on the log standings. Both teams are level on 19 points after 10 games and are only separated by goal difference.
The coal miners are unbeaten in their last four games. Unlike Dynamos, Hwange have been making use of their chances and scoring goals.
Their strikers led by Evans Rusike, Rodwell Chinyengetere, Gilbert Zulu and Aleck Marime have put a good show especially at home where the team is unbeaten with four wins and two draws this year.
Their coach Nation Dube said he is looking forward to positive play from his side.
“I am happy we don’t have any injuries to worry about and we are ready for this game. The spirits are quite high in our camp.
“We know Dynamos are a good side and they are not coming here just to fulfill a fixture. They also want to win it, the way we have also won some of our matches away from home.
“So it’s going to be a 50-50 game. We only don’t need to put ourselves under unnecessary pressure by looking at the log table. The championship is still a long way to go so we have to take each game as it comes,” said Dube.
Meanwhile Dynamos, battling to adjust to the tough economic environment, are lobbying the Premier Soccer League and fellow clubs for a reduction of the gate entry charges from US$3 to US$2.
Dynamos, who dumped their traditional home of Rufaro because of the prohibitive Harare City Council levies and a poor state of the artificial pitch, are understood to have already secured the support of four other teams.
The Harare giants, just like most of the PSL teams have been reeling from a drop in the spectators and last Sunday, they reduced the entry charges to $2 when they hosted Triangle at the National Sports Stadium.
That experiment seemed to have paid off as DeMbare saw more fans passing through the turnstiles in comparison to those who had watched their previous home game against FC Platinum at the same venue.
Now Dynamos, also taking a cue from the fact that the Warriors realised a bigger crowd when the charges were reduced to US$1 want the remainder of their home games to be pegged at US$2 with only such big games like the Battle of Zimbabwe clash a against Highlanders and the famous Harare derby showdown with CAPS United being the exceptions.
Dynamos secretary-general Webster Chikengezha said the move had also been prompted by the need “to cushion our supporters on transport to and from the National Sports Stadium’’.
“The economy is going through a liquidity crunch and we hope that by giving back US$1 to the fans it will enable to travel to the National Stadium because essentially the costs of watching a match at Rufaro for $3 and that of watching a game for US$2 at the National Stadium will remain the same.
“We had a better response for the Triangle game when we charged US$2 and hopefully the numbers will keep getting bigger,’’ Chikengezha said.
PSL chief executive Kenny Ndebele revealed that they had received Dynamos’ application for a review in the gate entry charges, which had since been getting the backing of some of the top-flight teams.
“Dynamos’ have proposed a reduction to US$2 except for the big games and so far four clubs have supported them on that and it seems that the matter may now have to be debated at the next board meeting and if it succeeds we may see the league accepting the reduction.
“The hunger to watch football among the fans is there if what we saw at the Warriors game is anything to go by and maybe with a reduction there could be an increase,’’ Ndebele said.
Although he did not give a breakdown of the revenue generated so far, Ndebele believes that in real terms, the attendance figures for Week 10 fixtures reflected an increase in spectator interest.
“By Week 10 of the 2013 season, 204 290 fans had watched the matches and by Week 10 of this season, 183 412 people had watched the games.
“It is important to note that by Week 10 last year, we had two big games involving Highlanders and Dynamos and CAPS United and Dynamos and the Harare derby alone had attracted 21 000 paying fans. So I am sure if any of the big derbies had come inside Week 10 we would have seen a much bigger figure.
“Team performance is also another big marketing tool for local football and for a team like Highlanders, their good start to the season has helped them realise an increase in attendance figures. Harare City were also consistent last year and they had more people taking an interest in their games.
“CAPS United is another example of a team that always gets an increase in spectators when the team is performing well,’’ Ndebele said.
The PSL chief executive however, reckoned that the top clubs also needed to continue to explore more ways of increasing their revenue base and reduce expenditure. Ndebele also said PSL clubs needed to consider a standard salary model for the top-flight players that took cognisance of the tough operating environment.
“Clubs should seriously think about standardisation of salaries and paying what they can afford, a lot is spent on signing on fees and bonuses and bonuses have to be balanced so that the players remain motivated to play rather than take comfort in the salary only, so like I said there is need for clubs to really assess the revenue streams against their expenditure,’’ Ndebele said.
The PSL Ndebele also said are targeting an increase in the number of matches that are beamed on SuperSport while the start of the knock-out competitions should also boost interest in the local game.
“We still have some big games coming and in terms of the competition for the championship we have the top seven teams with an equal chance of winning and as usual it is in the second half, that the men will be separated from the boys.
“It is in the second half of the season that we will also have the Chibuku Cup, the Top 8 and the Mbada Diamonds Cup coming and we are also targeting more coverage on TV and we believe all that should add to excitement’’.
Online Reporter