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THE Warriors have given soccer lovers reason to believe that there is a future for the local game. Their reaching the semi-finals of the Chan tournament is a big achievement that will be enacted on the Hall of Fame of Zimbabwean football.Zimbabwe’s locally based stars lost 4-5 to Libya in a pulsating semi-final tie that ended in a penalty shootout on Wednesday evening.
The result was good enough to impress even those that have been sceptical about Ian Gorowa and his men. Many did not respect the ingenuity of the former Black Rhinos striker whose career was cut short by injury while in South Africa. They thought Zimbabwe were out there to fill in the numbers.
What cemented that argument was that even local clubs were of late finding it difficult to stamp their authority in African club competitions.
A water tight defence well marshalled by big Dynamos goalkeeper George Chigova was impressive. They conceded just one goal in five matches. Hardlife Zvirekwi, Partson Jaure, Eric Chipeta and Milton Ncube were disciplined and had impressive Bantu Rovers anchorman
Danny Phiri doing all the donkey work to provide good cover for the team at the back.
The attacking options and creativity in midfield left questions being asked.
But the good thing is that this team should be the foundation of the future Warriors.
Gorowa is warned not to just call foreign players to his squad. They must prove where they are playing, that they are better than those in the Zimbabwe Premiership. That the local lads were able to measure up to the top four in Africa is a clear endorsement of the quality here.
Going forward the team has to be kept together. More friendly matches organised and more resources channelled towards the team getting exposed not against Botswana, Mozambique and Malawi but the big boys of African football.
This would help build the brand towards getting better sponsorships and more meaningful opposition.
Sportswear manufacturers, Puma who are now the team’s sponsors, will be happy with the team being among the top four on the continent. They are in it for enhanced visibility which is what Gorowa and the Warriors did to the Puma brand with their good run and it is what sponsors expect of any business deal.
Gorowa and his assistants must be retained. More funds must be made available so that they travel around the country to monitor players and add new faces that deserve the jersey.
Proper planning is a secret to success and we hope Zifa will take heed of advice to do much more to ensure coaches and players are not bogged down by issues to do with incentives.
In the Warriors, the nation now believes.
Online Reporter