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Eddie Chikamhi Harare Bureau
HOW Mine left for Seychelles yesterday with spirits high as they aim to finish off Seychelles side St Michel United in the return leg of their Confederation Cup first round tie tomorrow.The gold miners carry a healthy 5-1 lead from the first leg that was played in Bulawayo last week but they are not counting their chickens as yet despite having done enough at home to make them clear favourites to progress. The team left early morning yesterday from Harare International Airport via Johannesburg and were expected to arrive in the Indian Ocean island nation later in the evening.
How Mine are looking forward to training at the match venue this afternoon where coach Philani Ncube hopes to fine-tune his side and to adjust to the foreign conditions.
Club secretary James Zibowa yesterday said they have good chances of making the second round of the tournament but feels that his side needs to carry the right mentality into the game.
“It’s a new game which we have to win, just like we did the first leg. But this time they are the home team and they also want to win at home which means we have to carry the right mentality, knowing that it’s not over yet. Our aim is to get more goals there and we will be safe if we can get at least two goals.
“We need to maintain the confidence because where we are heading to in this tournament the games will be getting tougher and tougher. The teams that we will face are likely to be more experienced than us. So we have to aim for improvement with each and every game that we play. Zimbabwe should continue supporting us and we hope to do our best in flying the nation’s flag high,” said Zibowa.
How Mine’s preparations were threatened by injuries this week and they had to leave behind their midfielder Warren Dube who suffered a knock on his knee. But Edmore Muzanenhamo and Xolisani Moyo recovered on time for the trip.
The Bulawayo side has had a good start in their maiden year in the tournament after dismissing FC Chuoni of Zanzibar home and away in the 6-1 preliminary round victory.
They continued with their scoring form last week when they emerged the biggest winners of the first round thanks to Kuda Musharu’s brace, which took his tally to five goals in the second tier competition.
Veteran midfielder Menard Mupera, Thembani Masuku and fullback Morris Kadzola also scored in that match. However, How Mine who were promoted to the Premiership last season are not as new to African football as they may appear as some of their players are tried and tested professionals who had vast experience with different clubs at the top level.
The Bulawayo side will play either FC Kondzo of Congo Brazzaville or Bayelsa of Nigeria in the second round. The teams drew 0-0 in the first leg.
Online Reporter