Chronicle Editor
Fungai Muderere, Senior Sports Reporter
AMBITIOUS Zifa Southern Region Division One side Talen Vision has ventured into construction and engineering services to mitigate against the lockdown induced financial meltdown.
The Talen Vision Construction and Engineering department is into brick moulding and steel fabrication, and they produce standard bricks, blocks, wheelbarrows, window frames and scaffolds among other things.
Their main target market is the Filabusi mining community in Insiza district.
Speaking to Chronicle Sport, Talen Vision projects manager Mishon Tsabalaka said this venture was the brainchild of club president Khumbulani Nkomo.
“The club is now generating its own income through the construction and engineering department. The idea in the longterm is to wean Talen Vision Football Club from the Trukumb Mining sponsorship,” said Tsabalaka.
“During this Covid-19 period, the club has been inactive, but we can’t just sit on our laurels. It’s all about trying to get money for the club and we are very much confident that the club will be able to fully sustain itself as time goes on. It’s an initiative that has seen us manufacture our own manual brick moulder which compliments the electric brick moulder very well.”
He said they’re currently producing 100 000 bricks per month in addition to the wheelbarrows, window frames, scaffolds and other products used in the construction industry.
Club president Nkomo said the club’s construction department has since been contracted by Trukumb Mining to build 14 townhouses for the mine’s workers in Filabusi.
“It’s a project worth about US$1.4 million and should be completed by 21 August. As a club I think we are moving in the right direction because six months down the line jobs have been created and we have so far realised US$26 000,” said Nkomo.
While other clubs find themselves financially hamstrung due to the Covid-19 enforced inactivity, Talen Vision are vigorously pursuing this new financial revenue stream which is helping them to pay player wages.
Many Premier Soccer League clubs risk bankruptcy because of the short-term prospect of playing games in empty stadiums coupled with the longterm struggle to retain and find sponsorship.
Big teams like Highlanders and Caps United are finding the going tough after their sponsors NetOne decided to cut ties with the two clubs in the first month of the lockdown.
Caps United players even revolted over unpaid salaries at the beginning of June and police had to be called in to diffuse the tense standoff. — @FungaiMuderere.
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