Online Reporter
Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
“NOTHING has changed, I still feel the same way, and doing the same things that I could do many years ago. God willing, I have no doubt that I can go beyond 45.”
These were the words of Washington Arubi, the Mutare-born legendary Warriors goalkeeper who, almost two decades after making his professional debut, is back in the headlines — and this time for all the right reasons.
Born on August 29, 1985, and at 40, most probably the first ever player to don the national team jersey at that age, the Sakubva-born goalkeeper is once again the heartbeat of the Zimbabwe national team, having reclaimed the Warriors’ number one jersey, and becoming an inspirational figure in local football.
Arubi is part of the Zimbabwe national team contingent of locally and South Africa-based players who were the first group to arrive in Saudi Arabia on Monday might, along with Germany-based midfielder, Jonah Fabisch ahead of a friendly match against Algeria.
The national team will face the North Africans on Thursday at 6.30pm CAT in Jeddah.
The rest of the players are expected to arrive on Monday afternoon.
All things being equal, as it stands, Arubi, is highly likely to be the Warriors first choice goalkeeper when the Africa Cup of Nations 2025 competition gets underway in Morocco.
The tournament will kick-off on December 21, and runs until January 18, 2026.
Be that as it may, Arubi started his football journey in the sprawling suburb of Sakubva in Mutare, and like many of his generation who trace the infancy of their careers to the eastern border city, as well as many others who came after him, it all started at veteran junior’s gaffer, Timothy ‘Sicho’ Masachi’s La Sakubva Academy.
He went on to make his professional debut aged 17 for Lancashire Steel on October 25, 2003, in a 3-1 victory over Black Rhinos at Rufaro Stadium.
After steady early progress, he joined Highlanders in 2007, had a brief stint at Bantu Rovers, and finally signed for Dynamos in 2010 — the masterstroke that changed his career.
The move was the major turning point of his career. His larger than life exploits in 2011 at DeMbare, when Dynamos was still Dynamos, Arubi etched his status as one of the finest goalkeepers ever to emerge in the country when he kept 17 clean sheets, enabling DeMbare to clinch the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title.
That year he became only the third goalkeeper in history, after Japhet ‘Short Cat’ Mparutsa and Energy ‘Gokwe’ Murambadoro, to be crowned Zimbabwe soccer star of the year.
“I have had memorable moments in this game, and I have also gone through some painful moments. All the same we put everything in God’s hands,” said Arubi on the ups and downs that he went through in his lengthy goalkeeping career.
On his longevity in the field of play, Arubi said: “There, I am 100 percent sure that I still have a lot to offer to the game I love with a passion. Mentally and physically, I am well prepared to last the distance and never at one time have I ever thought about quitting the game. Certainly not in the near future.”
For a long time, Arubi has fondly been referred to with the moniker ‘Sekuru Gudo’, itself an emblem of the astuteness and fortitude that the veteran goalkeeper has shown over the years.
His performances caught the eye of South African scouts, leading to a 2012 transfer to University of Pretoria (Tuks).
He went on to join different teams that include Stellenbosch, SuperSport United, Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila, and Marumo Gallants.
It was at TTM in 2021 that he won the Nedbank Cup player of the tournament award, reigniting his career and opening the door for an unlikely national-team comeback.
Internationally, his Warriors career began in 2005, but it took nearly two decades — and a lot of perseverance — to regain the number one spot.
His infamous 2015 howler against Guinea seemed to end his national team run, but he never stopped training, improving, and believing.
Arubi was dropped, and his international career appeared over.
Today, that same goalkeeper — once written off after a single mistake — now stands as the backbone of the Warriors’ 2025 squad.
