Manica Diamonds, Dynamos draw

Ray Bande in Mutare

Manica Diamonds 0-0 Dynamos

DYNAMOS and Manica Diamonds yesterday settled for the fifth draw of their Castle Lager Premier Soccer League clash since the Gem Boys’ promotion into the topflight league. In 2019, when Manica Diamonds played their first-ever Castle Lager Premiership season, the then-top-flight league debutantes held the feared Harare outfit both at Sakubva Stadium and in the reverse fixture played in Harare.

In 2022, after the resumption of sporting activities following a lengthy Covid-19 layoff, the Gem Boys, as Manica Diamonds are fondly referred to by their growing fan base in Manicaland, lost by a solitary goal in Harare before forcing a stalemate at Sakubva Stadium in Mutare. Last year, Manica Diamonds snatched a point in Harare and then beat the highly-rated Glamour Boys 1-0 at Sakubva Stadium.

In yesterday’s exhilarating and yet balanced encounter at Sakubva Stadium, both teams were guilty of missing clear-cut scoring opportunities from the onset to the final whistle. The first-half saw both teams exchanging raids, but somehow goals remained elusive. Manica Diamonds returned for the second-half playing a more purposeful game, creating several scoring opportunities, but lacked the cutting edge in front of goal. Fortune Bhinzi missed the target by inches after snatching a loose ball and charging towards goal, but his shot went wide in the 65th minute.

Gem Boys’ goalkeeper Godfrey Chitsumba made a spectacular save and kept his team in the game when he summoned all his reflexes to cut a dangerous cross from Valentine Kadonzvo in the 72nd minute when Emmanuel Paga was well positioned to connect. Dynamos coach Genesis Mangombe said his team was just unlucky not to have won the encounter.

“We created chances, but failed to score. We have been creating chances, and we only need to work on our finishing. We have been unlucky as a team, but we have been laying well. There are goals we could have scored, but we were just unlucky,” he said. His opposite number, Jairos Tapera, felt the result is two points dropped for Manica Diamonds.

“This is two points lost at home. It was an open game in which either team could have won. We just have to reorganise ourselves and move on to the next fixture with confidence. The three changes we made at the start of the second-half helped us add momentum in our attack, but we were just unlucky not to score,” he said.