dyton mupawaenda
Don Makanyanga in Mhondoro-Ngezi
Ngezi Platinum Stars . . . . . . . . . . . (1) 1
Manica Diamonds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
IT was a huge sigh of relief for the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League champions Ngezi Platinum coach Takesure Chiragwi who secured a hard-fought win over Manica Diamonds at Baobab yesterday.
The champions had been without a win in their opening three games, and although they insisted they were not panicking, the slow start was cause for concern for the Mhondoro miners and their faithful.
Their opponents in yesterday’s game and last year’s runners-up Manica Diamonds are also without a win so far.
But a 39th-minute header from Claude Mapoka, off a free-kick by skipper Qadr Amini settled matters in this close battle.
At the end of the game, both Jairos Tapera for Manica Diamonds and Chiragwi admitted that football was a pressure game.
“Whether you win, lose, or draw football is a game of pressure.
“I have never seen a coach or team that is not happy after a win, it’s not me who is only happy but also the team in general,” said Chiragwi.
He felt that his charges could have killed the match in the first half.
“I think we should have scored three or more goals in the first half, and I liked the resistance that they showed in the second half because those guys (Manica Diamonds) were coming at us in the second half.
“But a win is a win, we look forward to the next game and hope we carry on with the momentum going forward because this win boosts our confidence, “ said Chiragwi.
Tapera acknowledged the worry over the Gem Boys’ poor start to the season.
“Football is about pressure whether you are playing or not, but what is important is taking positives after every game,” said Tapera. The Manica Diamonds coach felt they were unlucky to lose the match.
“I felt that we had a good performance, and we need to work on dealing with the set-pieces.
“And I feel that we could have gotten a draw at least but we were unlucky in front of goal, especially in the second half,” said Tapera.
In scoring the solitary goal, Mapoka ended a barren spell for Ngezi, stretching 309 minutes. The hosts seemed to be the hungrier of the two sides as they started off the match in a more attacking mode.
So intense was the Ngezi attacking play that inside the opening 10 minutes they had three clear chances.
While Tapera’s men failed to create any goal-scoring opportunities in the first period, they returned a much-changed outfit after the break. As he looked to galvanise his side, Tapera introduced the duo of former South African Premiership players, Tawanda Macheke and Kudakwashe Mahachi to his attack. The pair brought some urgency into the visitors’ game but still, Manica Diamonds’ shortcomings in the final third were glaring.
Online Reporter