Online Reporter
Langton Nyakwenda-Zimpapers Sports Hub
FC PLATINUM are beginning to emerge from the shadows of the Norman Mapeza era, with new coach Thabo Senong giving the Zvishavane giants renewed hope of salvaging their season through the lucrative ZIFA Munhumutapa Challenge Cup.
The four-time Premier Soccer League champions have struggled to replicate the dominance they enjoyed under Mapeza, who left at the end of last season after a decade at the club, during which he won three league championships and two Chibuku Super Cup titles.
But there are signs of a revival under Senong, who took over from Joel Lupahla at the end of July.
FC Platinum are 22 points adrift of log leaders Scottland and have long been kicked out of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title race, making the Munhumutapa Challenge Cup their biggest remaining prize on offer.
Winners of the country’s biggest knock-out tournament will pocket a staggering US$1 million and earn a ticket to next year’s CAF Confederation Cup.
“Obviously, we are in this Cup to win it,” FC Platinum chairman Benson Wirimai said.
FC Platinum face Central Region Division One side Blanket Mine in the quarter-finals, scheduled for October 2-4.
Wirimai, however, knows there will be no room for complacency.
“I think the draw is fair, but at this stage, everything is competitive.
“So, we just need to respect our opponents and play our normal game,” he said.
Although they recently crashed out of the Chibuku Super Cup, FC Platinum have shown encouraging signs under Senong, who is assisted by former Bafana Bafana and Kaizer Chiefs midfielder Reneilwe “Yeye” Letsholonyane. They held Scottland to a goalless draw at Rufaro in their last league outing, a few days after edging relegation-threatened Agama 1-0 at Mandava.
For Wirimai, the improvement vindicates the club’s decision to overhaul the technical department that was led by Lupahla.
“We have improved our performance of late, so we are very hopeful that the team will go all the way and win the ZIFA Munhumutapa Challenge Cup,” he said.
“It hasn’t been smooth sailing (adjusting to life after Mapeza), but we are confident that we are on the right track.
“We are aware that the changes we made — in personnel, the technical department and the executive — were a lot, so we knew it would take time.
“But I’m very confident that we’ve stabilised the ship and next season we’ll be punching above our weight.”
