Gorowa plots his mission

Augustine Hwata Sports Reporter
IAN Gorowa might have made a very good start in his job as the Warriors coach when his team dispatched Mauritius in their African Nations Championship qualifier but the coach is well aware of the pressure hovering around him when he guides the team in his first match at home tomorrow. Last Sunday the Warriors beat Mauritius 3-0 in Curepipe and the former Black Rhinos and Dynamos striker now hopes to notch another victory in the reverse fixture at Rufaro.
Nelson Maziwisa scored a brace while Simba Sithole added the other goal as Zimbabwe dispatched Club M and a win or a draw for the Warriors will see them meeting either Botswana or Zambia in the last qualifier.

Botswana held Zambia 1-1 in Molepole last Sunday but Gorowa has tipped Zambia to win the return fixture and square off against Zimbabwe in what could be  a grudge match.

Zambia beat Zimbabwe 2-0 in a Cosafa Castle Cup final and now Gorowa has challenged his troops to go all the way past Mauritius to get their revenge on Chipolopolo.
Former African champions Zambia host the Zebras at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola this afternoon.

“As much as Mauritius will give us a game on Sunday, the major game should be against Zambia. I do not want to underrate the Mauritians because the game is not yet finished and anything can happen.

“We spoke about it and the players know what is expected. We need to go out there on Sunday and win convincingly so that we prepare for the next game which is likely to be against Zambia

“We want the players to have a habit of winning and once you do that then it will be good for their confidence and for everybody,” said Gorowa.
Gorowa knows that victory, and a good performance at Rufaro, will help him win the confidence of the local fans.

“As a coach the moment you get appointed, the pressure starts building. So for pressure, one has to eat it every day.
“But I do not think I have much pressure now because the guys have played well before and I have confidence that the team is going to do well,” he said.
Gorowa said playing at Rufaro could exert a little pressure on the Warriors but it should not be anything that the players will not handle.

“Now they are playing in front of their fans and it puts them under some pressure but that’s where we need to come in and counter the attitude.
“Again, speaking on behalf of the technical team, I will repeat what I said before that our players should never under-estimate Mauritius because they could be in for shock if they do that.

“I am expecting us to play very well since we are playing at home. Playing away sometimes has less pressure and the boys can go there and perform better,” said Gorowa.

Gorowa has assembled a technical team that has Callisto Pasuwa, Mkhupali Masuku, Jairos Tapera, Richard Tswatswa and team manager Patrick Mutesva.
The players went through their paces at Prince Edward School in the morning.

The Warriors went to Les Brown Swimming pool for a swim in the afternoon as Mauritius used the school grounds.
While they have been changes in the technical officials from Pagel’s backroom staff, Gorowa has opted to continue with the bulk of the players assembled by his predecessor.

“I think there isn’t enough time to try and explore or experiment with new players and the core is already here.
“They were in the Cosafa tournament but one can see that we are making slight changes by including other players who were not part of the Cosafa squad and even some who were not part of the group that went to Mauritius,” said Gorowa.

Gorowa, whose football career has taken him to Switzerland and later South Africa, said he won’t be looking for any scapegoats if his team fails to deliver positive results.

“While there isn’t enough time to work with the team I am happy with what we have so far. A coach should not look for excuses and the players who are there should be able to do the job.

“We have to utilise them and take it up from there. I am not going to tamper too much with the team that but if they are going to be changes, it could be tactical,” he said.

Already Dynamos defender Augustine Mbara has been dropped from the leftback position with Triangle’s Blessing Chimwamuchere likely to fill the space since he is the only natural left back available in the team.

The other leftback Ocean Mushure has a pulled hamstring.
But Gorowa hinted that he is spoilt for choice in his attack as he has four in-form Premiership strikers at his service.
“We have got four strikers at our disposal in Nelson (Maziwisa) who did well, we also got Simba Sithole and they both scored goals.
“We have brought in Dominic Chungwa and also there is Tendai Ndoro.

“So I have got four strikers and I have to see who will suit better in the situations where we want to play and it’s good for a coach to have several options upfront,” said Gorowa.

Masimba Mambare, captain for the team, is likely to play behind the forwards and he has also challenged his teammates to get come to the party.
“I think we should be getting a win after beating them away. It’s always difficult to win an away game but we managed to do that and now people expect us to win at home.

“We should never disappoint the fans now,” he said.
“Every game in football brings its own amount of pressure but we have to deal with it. This a new game and pressure is there because we have to win at home.

“So, complacency is one enemy we are fighting  ahead of this game. I have to challenge the rest of the players never to underrate Mauritius because we might paid dearly,” he said.

The Highlanders player said the trick is to pick up from where they left last Sunday.
“The trick is to raise the gear just like we did in the reverse fixture.

“In Mauritius the guys had the right attitude in the game and that’s why we won. Even our finishing has improved a lot because we managed to convert some chances.

“But we should never underrate Mauritius because they are good in attack, especially on counter breaks. So we should be very alert,” he said.
The players, Mambare said, have grasped what Gorowa wants after dumping Pagels’ tiki-taka formula.

“We are getting new tactics and adjusting slowly to the new coach as he encourages us to play the ball around and at times he wants people who spread the ball when there is an opportunity,” Mambare said.