It’s all green at CAPS

The Harare giants find themselves just three points shy of the leaders, their best position at the halfway stage of the championship in the past four years, and a healthy seven points better off than where they were, at the same stage, last year.

They have a relatively young squad, when compared to last season, and where they crumbled, when pitted against their fellow giants, they are competing very well this year.
CAPS United were outclassed by Dynamos, in all their meetings, last season, including leaking three goals in their league match at the National Sports Stadium and a further three goals in the Mbada Diamonds Cup semi-final on neutral soil at Barbourfields.

Although they lost again to the Glamour Boys this year, stretching a winless streak that dates back to 2009, they made a match of it and only a penalty, converted by Devon Chafa, separated the two giants.

Last year, they lost both their league matches against Highlanders, including a 0-2 home defeat at Rufaro, but on Saturday at the National Sports Stadium they turned it around and handed Bosso a 1-2 loss.

Among the leading teams, CAPS United have made the biggest leap, in terms of progress in the championship race, when the statistics from last season and this season are taken into context.

Given all the challenges they faced at the beginning of the season, when a number of players jumped ship, CAPS United’s revival has been short of miraculous and yesterday, skipper Tapiwa Khumbuyani, said luck was also smiling on them this season.

Like the lucky break they got on Saturday when the match officials missed a routine offside call, which would have ruled out Leonard Fiyado’s winning goal, and the width of the crossbar that denied Milton Ncube a second, from a free-kick, which could have changed the game.

“Maybe in the past seasons it just wasn’t our time,” Khumbuyani told The Herald yesterday.
“Everyone is working hard and giving 100 percent. Everything is okay at the club and we have youngsters willing to give it their all and expose their talent.

“We want to win each and every game. That is our aim.
“And, obviously, this will make us finish in a very good position.

“On Saturday, we managed to beat Highlanders.
“Last year they beat us home and away and now it is our chance to do that.”

Last season, Makepekepe, at this stage, had 19 points and were on 11th position at the halfway stage of the championship race.
They were 14 points behind Highlanders and just one place above the relegation zone.

But it is different script this season.
Although Bosso are the still the leaders, CAPS United are not far off the mark and only three points separate the two.

Khumbuyani said confidence was slowly creeping into the team that they can match any other side in the league, including their big rivals, and they were targeting beating Bosso in their backyard.

CAPS United are inactive this coming weekend, which will give them time to recharge their batteries, as the domestic Premiership focuses on the BancABC Sup8r Cup matches.
Their next match is an away date against Bosso and, if Taurai Mangwiro and his men can win that one, they have every right to start dreaming they can end eight years of a barren search for the league title.

“We have self belief that we will beat them in their backyard,” the Green Machine skipper said.
“We are now even confident that maybe we can do something this time around and make a plan to beat Dynamos.

“Everyone will work hard to win that game when we meet in the reverse leg.
“Unfortunately, in the first leg we lost through a penalty.”

The captain said while they have worked as a united team, some players have done more and deserve special credit for their efforts.
He singled out goalkeeper Tafadzwa Dube, now rated the best goalminder plying his trade in the domestic Premiership, who has marked his return to the capital with a vintage performance between the posts.

Defender Arnold Chivheya, who was a target of abuse from a section of the club’s fans who felt he wasn’t good enough and was only being given preferential treatment by former coach Moses Chunga, has turned his game around and is now the club’s best defensive rock.

Their investment in youthful talent like leftback Ronald Pfumbidzayi, who was plucked from the Lowveld, is bearing fruit while a lot is expected from former Pamushana student, Takudzwa Mahori, once he adjusts to the game at this level.