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Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
HIGHLANDERS FC coach Kelvin Kaindu will be under immense pressure to do well in the Mbada Diamonds Cup that roars into life this weekend when Bosso play their first round against buoyant Triangle at Barbourfields Stadium.The match will be the second of a double header that has How Mine and Black Rhinos curtain-raising in a match also to be televised live on Supersport 9.
The Zambian mentor has presided over four tournaments since joining the Bulawayo giants last season, playing in two finals and in all the encounters, coming out second best.
Bosso’s last cup triumph was the 4-3 defeat of Dynamos in the 2011 Independence Cup final under Mkhuphali Masuku.
Kaindu’s first cup game at Bosso was the Mbada Diamonds Cup last year in which they laboured to a 2-1 win over now relegated Blue Rangers in the first round before a shock 2-3 defeat by Monomotapa at the Colliery Stadium in the quarter-finals.
Early this year they were losers to Dynamos in the lucrative Bob 89 Super Cup after they were handpicked and they lost to the same side again in the Independence Cup final.
Their next agony was in the BancABC Sup8r quarter-final when they were bundled out 3-1 on penalties by eventual losing finalists FC Platinum.
Kaindu and his boys have so far lost $375 000 in potential prizemoney since 2012.
“We don’t want to put unnecessary pressure on the technical team and the boys but honestly it has been a long time since we last won a trophy.
Some are even openly declaring that Bosso has been donating points and are prepared to embarrass us at our own home and I think that is rather belittling this institution. Those are not Bosso standards and it really concerns us,” said Highlanders chairman Peter Dube.
Triangle coach Gishon Ntini has already poked fun at Bosso by declaring that his side will be coming to Barbourfields Stadium for nothing but a win.
“We all know that of late Bosso has been donating points in the league games and we will use that record to prepare for them. We want to qualify for the final and even win the cup.
“Kelvin Kaindu is under pressure so are his players. We are playing this match as underdogs but we promise to come out with a positive result,” said the outspoken Ntini.
Dube said everybody at the club should remain focused on the job at hand and prepare well for the encounter, whose eventual winner is guaranteed $130 000 in prizemoney and a ticket to participate in the Caf Confederations Cup next season that carries a subsidy of $110 000.
Runners-up will walk home with $90 000, losing semi-finalists will pocket $45 000 while losing quarter-finalists are set to get $30 000. This weekend’s losers will have $15 000 going their way.
The present crop of Bosso older players could find themselves with nothing to show for their romance with the Bulawayo giants if they fail to lift any silverware this season.
Highlanders have tried and tested veterans who by their standards should now be thinking of getting new medals to add to what they could have won with the Bulawayo giants.
Some of the players have been accused of lacking the fighting spirit that was exhibited by yesteryear players like Zenzo Moyo, Honour Gombami, Blessing Gumiso, Thulani Biya Ncube, Sizabantu Khoza and Tapuwa Kapini.
The players also stand accused of lack of respect for the Highlanders institution.
“When we lost we were rarely seen in the streets because of embarrassment but the present crop of players are seen dancing the night away moments after a defeat,” former Bosso player, manager and chairman Ernest Sibanda was quoted in some sections of the media recently.
In other matches, a still partying Shabanie Mine play host to Chicken Inn at Mandava Stadium on Saturday hoping to end the season with two trophies following their BancABC Sup8r triumph while Mandla Mpofu is also seeking his second silverware of the season.
Fixtures
Saturday: Shabanie Mine v Chicken Inn (Mandava), Caps United v Motor Action (Sakubva), Buffaloes v Black Mambas ( Rimuka).
Sunday: Hwange v FC Platinum (Colliery), How Mine v Black Rhinos (Barbourfields), Highlanders v Triangle (Barbourfields), Harare City v Monomotapa (Rufaro), Dynamos v Tripple B (Gibbo)
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