Tinaye Agere
Langton Nyakwenda
BACK in the day, when they were still the glamour boys of local football, a trip to Hwange was a simple logistical issue for Dynamos.
It was routine for DeMbare to simply fly into the resort town of Victoria Falls, then travel 100 kilometres by road to the Colliery, a day before the match.
After the game, DeMbare would put up in Hwange before travelling back to Victoria Falls the following morning to catch a flight back to Harare.
Last season, they had the same luxury, albeit temporarily, thanks to a partnership with Rouxgold Travel Agency, which saw DeMbare enjoy the privilege of flying to Bulawayo, where they hosted their home matches.
But things have changed somewhat at the troubled giants.
After beating Hwange 1-0 at the Colliery last Sunday, Dynamos players travelled by road to Bulawayo and arrived in the City of Kings almost at midnight.
They left Bulawayo early in the morning on Monday and reached the capital city around 4pm.
The following morning, the players were back at training.
They trained again on Wednesday and went straight home because there was no camping for the match against Yadah the following day.
As a result, Dynamos laboured to a 1-1 draw against the Miracle Boys, a result that once again exposed their lack of consistency.
“Some players complained of fatigue,” revealed an insider.
Camping before a match is no longer basic at Dynamos.
“These days we just meet in town at 11am on the day of the match, we then go for an early lunch at Cresta Oasis and from there, we go straight to Rufaro,” revealed one player.
It means the Dynamos technical team no longer has control over a player’s behaviour prior to a match.
A fortnight ago, players refused to train over non-payment of bonuses and even threatened not to fulfil the blockbuster clash against Highlanders at Rufaro Stadium.
Normalcy returned after the executive sourced some funds. The players are now owed bonuses for the win in Hwange and the draw against Yadah.
The club still owe some key players their signing-on fees.
Sources told Zimpapers Sports Hub at least nine players, most of them regular starters, are still owed thousands of dollars.
DeMbare have also been rocked by internal power struggles.
Treasurer Musa Gwasira quit the club last week. Interestingly, Gwasira handled DeMbare’s signing-on fee payments.
“There are lots of issues at the club. The institution has lots of centres of power,” claimed a Dynamos insider.
DeMbare have sunk so low that training balls can now be an issue at the club that claims to be the most supported in the country, and remains the only Zimbabwean side to reach the CAF Champions League final, although it was 26 years ago.
These are some of the undercurrents at Dynamos, who host Bikita Minerals at Rufaro this afternoon.
After 20 rounds of action in the 2024 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season, DeMbare have 28 points out of a possible 60, which translates to a 47 percent success rate.
With just six wins in 20 matches, DeMbare’s win rate stands at a paltry 30 percent.
At this stage last season, Dynamos had 33 points, which means they are five points worse.
Dynamos have scored 18 goals in 20 matches, and three of those came via the boardroom, which puts their goal per match ratio at a paltry 0.9.
They have been creating chances, but their strikers have not been clinical.
That their top scorer is central defender Kevin Moyo, who has three goals, tells a story.
“I am very worried with the way we are missing chances and I can’t take this lightly,” Dynamos coach Genesis Mangombe told Zimpapers Sports Hub yesterday.
“Our position on the log has been determined by lack of scoring. We are creating chances, but we are missing.”
DeMbare have drawn 10 of their 20 matches, and most of those draws could have been turned into wins, had their strikers been more potent.
Their strikers Sadney Urikhob and Emmanuel Paga have a goal each.
Congolese striker Eli Ilunga has been frozen out of the team.
“I have been talking to my guys about the need for us to score goals,” said Mangombe.
“The match against Bikita Minerals is not going to be easy as they are also saying they can’t lose twice against us, so they will try as much as possible to upset us.”
DeMbare beat The Lithium Boys 1-0 at Sakubva Stadium in the reverse fixture on Match Day Four.
After drawing against Yadah at Rufaro midweek, DeMbare cannot afford to miss the target again this afternoon.
“We can’t go for two games without registering a win,” says Mangombe, who is also worried about his players’ match fitness levels.
“We didn’t have much time to prepare for this game. We travelled to Hwange. After Hwange, we played a midweek game, and now we have a weekend game. So, the preparatory programme was not perfect, but we will try and do our best.”
Dynamos are without influential skipper and centre back Frank Makarati, who has picked up three yellow cards.
Donald Dzvinyai, Tendai Magwaza and Kevin Moyo are some of the options.
DeMbare are just four points ahead of Bikita Minerals, who are under the tutelage of former Shabanie Mine player Arnold “Dunga” Jani.
The Lithium Boys are winless in their last four matches.
Fixtures
Yadah v Bulawayo Chiefs (Heart Stadium), Dynamos v Bikita Minerals (Rufaro), Hwange v Simba Bhora (Colliery), Highlanders v TelOne (Barbourfields), Green Fuel v Chegutu Pirates (Green Fuel Arena), Manica Diamonds v Ngezi Platinum Stars (Sakubva), ZPC Kariba v Chicken Inn (Nyamhunga), FC Platinum v Herentals (Mandava)
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