Chronicle EditorRichard Muponde in Plumtree
PLUMTREE Town Council has set aside $20 000 for the construction of a precast perimeter wall around Dingumuzi Stadium in the hope of attracting a Premiership side from Matabeleland to adopt the venue as its home ground.
The border town once tasted Division One and Division Two football when Plumtree Chiefs and Kombani FC were based there.
Plumtree Town Council secretary Dumezweni Davis Luthe confirmed the project yesterday.
“We have moulded about 20 000 bricks out of the 30 000 needed. After setting aside $20 000, we said we have to mould bricks and build the perimeter wall and the terraces. This is going to be done in the first quarter of the year,” said Luthe.
He said they had already sunk a borehole and a water pump was already in place.
“This stadium will be of Premiership standard. We don’t have a team in the topflight league, but we believe that if we spruce it up, we might get a team in the league which might want to adopt Dingumuzi Stadium as its home ground.”
Luthe also said a spruced up stadium would also encourage Plumtree teams to aim for promotion.
“We have small teams here which play good football. Remember at one time we had Plumtree Chiefs in Division One. We feel the upgrading of the stadium will encourage our teams to aim high and also get promoted to topflight football,” Luthe said.
In 2016 Beitbridge Town Council upgraded Dulivhadzimu Stadium in line with Premier Soccer League recommendations for the border town to host topflight matches.
Dulivhadzimu Stadium was home to former PSL side Border Strikers, who, before the renovations, had been forced to play their home matches 300km away at Mandava Stadium in Zvishavane.
After Border Strikers were relegated at the end of the 2016 season, the stadium was adopted by relegated former Premiership side Tsholotsho FC as their home ground.
@richardmuponde
Online Reporter