adminLovemore Dube Sports Editor
THE gallant Zimbabwe Warriors collapsed under the weight of expectation at the semi-final hurdle of the Orange African Nations Championship in Bloemfontein, South Africa, yesterday evening.Libya were the nation’s conquerors, winning 5-4 on penalties after the two teams could not be separated in two hours of football. It was then left to the dreaded lottery to determine who proceeds to the final in Cape Town at the weekend.
With two penalty saves, big Dynamos goalkeeper George Chigova, a boy who started his schooling in Bulawayo before moving to Harare in his teens to enhance his soccer career, seemed to have thrown the nation a lifeline.
Partson Jaure, Eric Chipeta who took the first one, Danny Phiri and Hardlife Zvirekwi were on target for Zimbabwe. Peter Moyo, his out of contract Highlanders teammate Milton Ncube and Ali Sadiki denied Zimbabwe a deserved place in the final.
Zimbabwe had performed beyond expectations to go through to the last four in a tournament that saw hosts South Africa sent packing in the preliminary round.
The underdog tag appeared to have spurred the guys on and they will look back as history setters. What was encouraging was that every player was committed and this must have provided a good foundation for a future Warriors team. Zifa can take solace in the fact that the local boys have shown that they deserve better recognition and that the foreign legion must be invited on merit and not on the big name tags.
Yesterday despite some heroic performances by the defence and anchorman Phiri, Zimbabwe created numerous chances. It was either they tried to drill a hole through an opponent’s body, rushed their finishing or shot into no-man’s land. With better composure and accurate shooting, the result could have been different.
It was a good showing by any standard and the boys appeared to have the better of the exchanges. Watching Dynamos Number One fan Chris Romario shed a tear during the tense stages of the match at the Free State Stadium, touched the hearts of many who followed proceedings on television.
A quick survey in the city showed that most pubs were full. Each of the Warriors’ matches raised hopes. Zimbabwe’s 1-0 win against Burkina Faso saw Ian Gorowa and his men become the first national team to go this far in a continental tournament.
The quarter-final, a 2-1 win over Mali last Saturday had many believing that this could be the team to go all the way to the final.
Online Reporter