Chronicle Editor
Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
ALTHOUGH the late Highlanders’ president and maverick football administrator Ndumiso Gumede was a well-known person within and outside football circles, there are always other little details that were perhaps unknown to even those that may have been close to him.
Gumede passed away at Mpilo Central Hospital on Wednesday afternoon at the age of 76.
Chronicle Sport reveals 11 things that most of his admirers may not have been privy to.
– Grew up in Mzilikazi suburb staying at a house in R Square.
– Married twice and divorced twice.
His first marriage was from 1973 to 1987 and his second only lasted for two years from 1992 to 1994. He has twin sons from his first marriage and a son from his second.
– Had a daughter in between his two marriages.
– Never won any league title at Bosso.
Despite his decorated life as a football administrator, especially at Highlanders, Yours Truly never got the privilege of winning a league title with Amahlolanyama.
Even that trailblazing 1986 Highlanders that won every knockout competition silverware on offer that year failed in its quest to win the league title. That was also the year that Gumede had returned to lead Bosso as chairman again.
-Youngest Highlanders chairman.
It was in 1978 at the age of 33 that Gumede took over the reins from Landcut Gumbo as chairman.
-He was a qualified referee.
While teaching at Highfield Secondary School in Harare, he also took up refereeing courses, starting from the lower levels before later upgrading himself. He later became an accredited match commissioner.
– Member of the Fifa/ Interpol programme on prevention of match manipulation.
During an interview with Chronicle Sport in 2014, Gumede called on players and officials to embrace Fifa’s Triple R guidelines to combat match fixing.
The Triple R guidelines are to enable individuals to recognise, resist and report any signs or actual match fixing taking place anywhere.
– Gumede trained as a teacher, majoring in mathematics and science, and taught at Highfield and Mzilikazi Secondary schools.
-Football legends, the late Shackman Tauro and Oliver Kateya were among his students at Highfield Secondary.
-He was an actor and appeared in a number of television dramas, including Yellow Card, where he was a football coach. He was known as Baba Ncube in the drama series More Time and acted as a priest in Xola.
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