Online Reporter
Blessing Malinganiza, Zimpapers Sports Hub
SIMBA BHORA coach Joel Luphahla has admitted responsibility for his team’s early Caf Champions League exit, calling the defeat a hard but valuable lesson.
The Shamva side bowed out of Africa’s premier club tournament on Sunday after a 4-2 penalty shootout loss to Eswatini’s Nsingizini Hotspurs. Simba Bhora had carried a 1-0 cushion from the first leg but surrendered it with a similar scoreline away from home. Blessing Moyo and Tapiwa Mandinyenya missed their kicks in the shootout, leaving their debut continental campaign in ruins.
“We didn’t have a good outing. It’s disappointing, but the boys gave their all,” Luphahla said.
In a candid self-assessment, the rookie coach said he must learn quickly from the experience. “It’s Ok, it’s football. It’s my first season. It was bound to happen to make a lot of errors or to come short here and there,” he said.
Rather than seeking excuses, Luphahla framed the exit as a stepping stone.
“Experience is the best teacher,” he added.
With the continental dream over, Simba Bhora now turn to the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League. They meet relegation threatened CAPS United next and still hold a game in hand against Triangle. Though Scottland have temporarily moved to the top of the log, the championship remains within Simba Bhora’s control if they keep winning.
Simba Bhora’s loss to a team from Eswatini clearly underlines the skills poverty our football has sunk into. I have said it before, these mediocre teams that are taking the local championship aren’t good enough and are always exposed when it comes to continental tournaments. FC Platinum won the league four seasons on the trot but were repeatedly an embarrassment in the CAF Champions League. These small teams with bags full of cash buy their way to the top and get exposed where they cannot use their money like in the CAF tournaments. We all know that.