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Grace Chingoma Senior Sports Reporter
AS Zimbabwe failed to make an impact at the 2017 COSAFA Under-20 tournament, former Young Warriors coach and one of the most successful drivers of junior development Rodwell Dhlakama, has called for revitalisation of programmes to stem the slide of youth football in the country.
Dhlakama, who is a technical manager at Premiership side Chapungu, has been following with serious concern the decline by the Under-17 and Under-20 sides which has seen them struggle to make an impact in recent years.
For the second year running, the Young Warriors could not go beyond the first round stage at the COSAFA Under-20 championships in Kitwe, Zambia. In fact it has now been a decade since the Young Warriors who were a dominant force in the region along with South Africa and Zambia, climbed up the podium to lift the cup.
Ironically, it was Dhlakama who was the last coach to lead the Young Warriors to success at the COSAFA Under-20 competition with a class that was headlined by Knowledge Musona now the skipper of the Warriors. Since then it has been a cocktail of disappointments with the latest coming in Kitwe where Bhekithemba Ndlovu’s boys could only manage five points from two goalless draws and a win.
More worryingly was the fact that the team that travelled to Kitwe could only manage just one goal, a late effort from King Nasama of Dynamos against Angola and as it turned out goal difference decided the group, which also featured eventual tournament runners-up Lesotho, Angola and Namibia.
Dhlakama, this week told The Herald of his worry with the decline in the youth football standards which also saw the Under-17 side fall at the group stage at the COSAFA Under-17 tourney in Mauritius. The former Monomotapa and Kiglon coach said there is need for a sober approach from all the stakeholders to revive junior development.
He believes if the decay is not addressed now, it will catch up with the senior national team, which is currently performing well and was at the 2017 African Cup of Nations in Gabon.
“Something must be done. The board member responsible for development should spearhead the programmes, this is a critical area and this person is a key figure who should understand the junior development portfolio well. There is no consistency in terms of appointments of coaches. For the past three years there is no development to talk about really . . . it is like falling into a bottomless pit.
“There is no progress for the players until they graduate into the national team. It is unacceptable to lose to teams like Lesotho, whose population is equivalent to our major towns. For me it’s treasonous. If the situation remains like this, after 10 years even our national team will start losing to such teams like Lesotho,” Dhlakama said.
ZIFA have sadly operated without a board member responsible for development since March last year when the late Edzai Kasinauyo was relieved of his duties. Dhlakama noted that junior development is one area which needs passionate coaches, who are specialised in that area.
“Coaches differ, some are good when it comes to Division One football structures and some understand the Premier Soccer League well while some are passionate and know more about junior development football. So people shouldn’t just be picked randomly or to satisfy tribal lines.
“If you look in the past, it was known that in a certain area or town the proponents of junior development were known, names like Ali Baba Dube or Cosmas “Tsano” Zulu, if you ask Chitungwiza guys like Alois Bunjira and Stewart Murisa, all of them will tell you they came come through Never Gombera’s hands and in Mutare there were people like James Mahala.
“There is a younger generation of coaches in these areas who are passionate about junior football and ZIFA should track these people and not just pick people randomly. ZIFA should consult, look at how their predecessors used to do with the junior development portfolio which have sunk to an all-time low.”
The former high school teacher said events such as the Coca-Cola Tri-Nations Under-20 and other NASH competitions were very instrumental in nurturing talent.
“It would identify all the Under-20 best players from schools, who would then feature in matches against other countries like Zambia and Malawi. I remember we won three gold medals between 2004 and 2006 and I was the coach then.
“Coca-Cola decided to change the format, so it is no longer a tri-nations, but it was very helpful, even if you look at its history. It was the launch pad for careers of players such as Benjamin Nkonjera (late) and Peter Ndlovu,” Dhlakama said.
The progress of each player from the Under-17 up to the senior team should, according to Dhlakama, be like a graph which can be traced clearly.
“The key age group is Under-20 and if a player reaches 20 before playing in the Premier Soccer League, he will become a late developer and at times may fail to reach the apex.
“If you look at the current players in the Warriors, the likes of Khama Billiat, Knowledge Musona, Abbas Amidu, George Chigova, Eric Chipeta and Qadr Amini, played together from the Under-17 national team and they are still playing together. The progress of players should be evident, people should be able to track it from the junior days up until they graduate into senior team and eventually retire from football.
“Even if you look at Peter and Nkonjera, they started playing together in the juniors’ team up to the national team. But now there is no consistency, people are scattered, you cannot trace where the Young Warriors squad of say, three years ago are? Where did they go after featuring in these tournaments?” said Dhlakama.
Dhlakama also noted with concern that there is no longer a strong partnership between the association and NASH.
“There is need for revitalisation with people with strong understanding for junior development. The school heads in charge are no longer involved with the association in their junior football dealings as they used to do years back.
“The Under-17 was a baby of ZIFA and NASH because, Under-17 players will be school going age and that’s how I got into ZIFA structures, I was actively involved in the NASH structures as a teacher and coach”.
Dhlakama has won several gold medals with the junior teams among them ANOCA Zone Six Games team in Maseru in 2007 and the COSAFA Under-17 Championships in Namibia.
Online Reporter