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Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
UNDER pressure Highlanders coach Kelvin Kaindu failed to make it to Bulawayo from the United Kingdom as expected yesterday but will instead arrive in the city this afternoon aboard a luxury coach from Victoria Falls.
He will arrive at 2PM, slightly more than 24HRS before Tshilamoya go into battle against buoyant Chapungu United in their Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season opener at Ascot Stadium tomorrow.
The Bulawayo giants sprang to their coach’s defence, describing him as a “guy who likes spending every bit of his time at his workplace”.
Kaindu, in charge of Highlanders since 2012 where he has endeared himself with the hard to please Bosso fans, left the country for the UK last week to attend his final Uefa B licence lecture and was expected back home yesterday.
“He is in Zambia and was expected to cross over to Zimbabwe via Victoria Falls today (yesterday) but failed due to circumstances beyond his control. He will cross over first thing in the morning tomorrow (today) and board the luxury bus to Bulawayo, arriving in the afternoon,” said one of his associates.
Peter Dube, the Highlanders chairman, downplayed the whole thing, saying the God-fearing Kaindu was probably held up by circumstances well beyond his control.
“Remember even when he left, we never were definite that he would arrive on Thursday but said by the end of the week he should be here. Our coach is a guy who is honest, who loves his work and would never play truant,” said Dube last night.
With the Zambian out, assistant coach Mark Mathe has been in charge of the black and white army who have fired blanks in four successive pre-season matches despite their ruthless invasion of the market, roping in no less than eight seasoned players.
Mathe said they had since put all those statistics behind them and were fully geared for the start of the season.
“Highlanders is ready for this and other games, we need to defend the integrity and reputation of this institution and the good thing is that even the boys are fully aware of that,” said Mathe.
He said they had been working very hard on their shortcomings, especially their failure to convert chances and believes his players have corrected that bit.
“We know for sure that it’s now the real thing. As has been the norm with Highlanders in previous years, our first game is always a must-win and win we must on Saturday (tomorrow),” said Mathe.
The team had an injury scare during yesterday’s afternoon session when poster boy Kudakwashe Mahachi suffered a minor knock but Mathe said the Mamelodi Sundowns-bound playmaker should be fit to play.
He said even the injured quartet of vice skipper Erick Mudzingwa, Milton Ncube, Peter “Rio” Moyo and Rahman Kutsanzira were training with the rest of the guys and were available for selection tomorrow afternoon.
Meanwhile, our Midlands Correspondent Lovemore Zigara reports that Airforce of Zimbabwe outfit Chapungu have vowed to upset the applecart and dispatch Highlanders when the two sides clash at Ascot Stadium tomorrow in a Castle Lager Premier Soccer League encounter.
The Premiership returnees, whose last flirtation with the topflight league was six years ago, return with their heads high after clinching the Zifa Central Soccer League (CSL) ticket with a record 77 points in which they tasted defeat only once and have been in top form in the pre-season warm up games.
“Waru Waru” as Chapungu are affectionately known, were in second place behind Tripple B in the 2012 season before Lady Luck smiled on the airforce side last season.
A fairytale run during the pre-season friendlies saw the Gweru based outfit not losing a single match holding its own against seasoned Premiership campaigners such as champions Dynamos (1-1), Harare City (1-0) and Caf Confederations Cup representatives How Mine (5-1). There is belief in the Chapungu camp that they can perform the Houdini Act and take Highlanders to the cleaners come tomorrow.
Judging by the razzmatazz which has filled the Midlands capital ahead of tomorrow’s match, a full house is expected.
Chapungu coach John Nyikadzino seems to have been drawn into the optimism frenzy which has engulfed the city and vowed to gore Highlanders who have also become the topflight league’s bridemaids for two consecutive seasons.
Nyikadzino said he respects Highlanders but was quick to point out that they hold a psychological advantage against their counterparts after knocking them out in the semi-finals of the CG Msipa Invitational Tournament when they dispatched them 4 – 2 on penalties after the match had ended nil-all in regulation time.
“We respect Highlanders as a big club in Zimbabwe but as Chapungu we are not under any pressure to beat Highlanders. It is them who are under pressure to get a positive result from us as they are a big side and are already being touted as title contenders.
“We are promising them a good game and we are confident of collecting maximum points especially after we beat them during the semi-finals of the CG Msipa Trophy which gives us a huge psychological boost ahead of the match,” he said.
The win during the invitational tournament was Chapungu’s first in 12 years with their last positive result against the Bulawayo giants being a 1-0 triumph at Ascot Stadium in 2001 in a league match.
The airmen will be banking on their captain Callisto Maheya, the Murisa twins Ngoni and Charles and hotshot Maxwell Mavhuto who has been scoring for fun since joining Chapungu from the now defunct Tripple B.
Fixtures:
Tomorrow: Caps United v ZPC Kariba (Gwanzura); Bantu Rovers v Black Rhinos (Luveve, 1300hrs SS9); Chicken Inn v Harare City (Luveve,1530hrsSS9); Chapungu v Highlanders (Ascot)
Sunday: Hwange v Buffaloes (Colliery); How Mine v Dynamos (Barbourfields);SS9; Shabanie Mine v Triangle United (Maglas) ;Chiredzi v FC Platinum (Gibbo)
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter