Online Reporter
Onward Gangata
Zimpapers Sports Hub
THERE was a lot of euphoria about the start of the 2026 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season from fans across the country given the lavish way some of the emerging clubs went about their transfer business.
A fixture pitting defending champions Scottland and new kids on the block, Hardrock, staged at Chahwanda Stadium in Kwekwe was always going to steal the show.
And it did!
Title favourites squaring off on the opening day is by any measure a headliner.
This fixture asked serious questions about the place of the old guard in the modern-day football ecosystem.
Dynamos, whose match against TelOne had been postponed the previous day due to a waterlogged pitch, had to settle for a morning kick-off on Sunday.
But DeMbare have a way of attracting attention and making headlines from the blue, as they did on Sunday.
Against all odds, they overcame a very strong TelOne side, winning 2-1 in convincing fashion. TelOne coach, Hebert “Jompano” Maruwa, had earlier warned in his preview of the match against Dynamos about the Harare side being unpredictable.
Everyone thought Maruwa was being modest. DeMbare was a sheep being led to the altar for slaughter, many believed.
A week ago, Dynamos had suffered one of their most humiliating defeats in recent memory, going down 5-0 to Scottland in the Castle Challenge Cup at Rufaro.
DeMbare desperately needed a comeback, they had to restore dignity to the country’s most storied club.
And when they trudged onto the pitch at Ascot, DeMbare delivered.
A different Dynamos turned up and they played differently. Dynamos coach, Genesis “Kaka” Mangombe, gave starting berths to new signings — defenders Isaac Landu and Christopher Nettey, as well as winger Stanley Billiat.
There were debuts for Frank Argymeng and Perfect Chikwende while Tatenda Makoni returned to guard the goal.
Despite suffering an early setback when Jerry Chipangura gave the Wifi Boys the lead, DeMbare showed great resilience in their fightback. Argymeng headed home the equaliser before Jairos Kasondo’s clever chip won the game for the Glamour Boys.
“There are more players to choose from, that means we have depth,” Mangombe said after the match.
“We can work with the numbers because we have different players in the same positions and that brings competition.”
It may not have been a polished performance, but Mangombe will tell you a win is a win.
The incessant rains that pounded the Midlands capital all week made the pitch unplayable.
Nevertheless, the Dynamos gaffer will draw positives from some of his new signings. Billiat was a constant thorn in the flesh for the TelOne defenders, his nimble foot kept the defenders back peddling and had the fans on the edge of their seats.
However, Nettey was without doubt the most outstanding, the Ghanaian was stoic in defence, shutting out Tawanda Macheke and Leeroy Murape with ease.
Filling the void left by former captain Emmanuel Jalai will not be easy, but in Nettey, Mangombe has somewhere to start from.
“There is still a lot of work, we need to see how the team plays in a normal pitch, we still have to sort out our transitions going forward and several others areas,” added Mangombe.
Dynamos fans will know it is too early.
Scottland on the other hand are in a league of their own, at some point in their match against Hardrock they tore apart their opponents with ease but lacked the precision to finish off.
Moses Shidolo, Knowledge Musona and Panashe Mutimbanyoka were a constant threat all afternoon, midfielder, Aboubakar Moffat has seamlessly fit into the Mabviravira midfield.
Even Hardrock coach Kelvin Kaindu, who fielded 10 new signings in his starting 11, admitted his side had done well to earn a point against the Mabvuku side.
“They are the defending champions, they are just coming from beating Dynamos 5-0 in as much as we would have wanted a win, a point is good for us,” Kaindu said.
Scottland coach, Norman Mapeza feels his side is not too far from the finished product.
“Look at the chances we created, very well, we worked very well, I am more than happy with the boys. We just need to keep working hard,” he said.
It is clear Scottland are still the team to beat this season and whoever wins the title will have to get past Mapeza and his men to knock them off their perch.
