Online Reporter
Howard Musonza in MARRAKECH, Morocco
Zimpapers Sports Hub Editor
WHEN Brendan Galloway stepped onto the Africa Cup of Nations stage for the first time, it came without warning and without ceremony.
There was no gradual introduction and no time to breathe the tournament in. An injury forced the moment. Teenage Hadebe went down against Angola. Thirty six minutes were on the clock. Suddenly AFCON was no longer an idea or a future ambition. It was immediate. It was urgent. It was a short walk from the bench into a game that mattered.
Galloway did not panic.
He explains it with the calm of a defender who understands that chaos belongs to the moment, not to the mind.
“Just to try and help the team,” he says. “That was the most important thing. You come on to help the team, to try and get points or get the win.”
What struck him was not the speed or the noise, but the sense of control he felt stepping in.
“It was quite a calmness,” he says. “The main thing is that we all go on the pitch with the objective to try and win for the country.”
This is Galloway’s first Africa Cup of Nations. He arrived in Morocco as an EFL League One defender with Plymouth Argyle, raised in England, shaped by a different football system, now working inside a Zimbabwean campaign weighted by history and expectation.
So far, the experience has settled him rather than shaken him.
“It’s been good. I’ve enjoyed it,” he says. “We’ve felt the support from outside, which has been great.”
That support has followed the Warriors through a narrow loss to Egypt, a frustrating draw with Angola, and into tonight’s final group match against South Africa. The equation is simple and unforgiving. Win, and Zimbabwe move closer to history. Anything less, and the familiar sense of what might have been returns.
Galloway does not soften the stakes.
“It’s crucial,” he says. “We want to win. We want all three points and we want to progress.”
South Africa are the obstacle. Neighbours. Rivals. A team Zimbabwe have unsettled before. Earlier this year, the Warriors held Bafana Bafana to a draw in World Cup qualifying, delaying their progress and reminding them that this fixture never behaves politely.
Galloway understands that context.
“We know what the rivalry is like,” he says. “Both teams want to win. Both teams need the three points.”
He talks like a defender preparing for a long night.
“This game is going to be really exciting. We’re going to put our bodies on the line. We’re going to fight until the 90th minute. We’re going to try and come away victorious.”
Inside camp, there has been no confusion about the task. No drifting into scenarios. No waiting on other results.
“We need to be ready. We need to be 100 percent ready,” he says. “We know we have to win the game.”
The squad itself is a mix of backgrounds and pathways. Players based in England. Players based in South Africa. Players shaped at home. Different accents and habits, one objective.
“I think it’s easy,” Galloway says. “We all love football. We all want to train well. We all want to do well for the country.”
He has spent enough time in camp now to feel settled, to understand the personalities, to enjoy the lighter moments.
Asked who brings the humour, he does not hesitate.
“I sit next to Divine at lunch and dinner,” he says. “He’s quite funny. He makes me laugh.”
But when matchday arrives, Galloway turns inward.
While others sing or pace, he simplifies his routine.
“I listen to music,” he says. “And then I pray.”
It is not something he performs for attention. It is repetition. Habit. Preparation.
“I’ve been doing that for a while,” he says. “I do the exact same thing every single game. Then I’m mentally ready for whatever the task is.”
Faith, for Galloway, is not transactional. He does not ask for outcomes. He asks for balance.
“I just ask for health, guidance, general things,” he says. “It’s not mainly football related.”
That concern stretches outward.
“Health for my family, for the team, for the supporters. Just general health and safety.”
Then he lands on the quiet truth that shapes his approach.
“If we have all that, then we’ll be okay. If we win games as well, we’ll be even happier.”
Tonight, happiness has a clear definition.
Zimbabwe have never progressed beyond the AFCON group stage. This squad has carried belief into Morocco and learned how unforgiving the margins can be. Galloway entered the tournament through necessity, not planning, and steadied himself the same way he always does.
