adminAlbert Marufu in LONDON, England
FORMER Mighty Warriors goalkeeper, Tafadzwa Mhunduru, has finally called it quits after a career spanning over two decades.
For the 36-year-old, it brings the curtain down on a career that had a mixture of both success and sadness.
As a 16-year-old, Mhunduru was part of the trailblazing Mighty Warriors that touched the heavens and finished fourth at the 2000 Africa Women’s Championships in South Africa.
Two years later, she was also part of the team that lost 2-1 to South Africa in the 2002 Cosafa Cup final.
With that performance Mhunduru, Precious Mpala, Nomsa Moyo and Sithelelwe Sibanda, among a host of others, soon became household names.
“We had a good team then. I remember comforting the other players when we lost and that became the headline of the article in the papers the next day,” recalled Mhunduru.
“The peak of my career in Zimbabwe was when I went to South Africa as part of the national team that participated at the African Cup of Nations (the women’s version).
“The lowest point of my career was when I was dropped from the team that travelled to Nigeria for the same tournament as a result of a head injury sustained at training.”
Mhunduru holds a Level One Goalkeeper’s Coaching certificate.
It is the injury, while in camp, which showed her the cruel nature of football administration in Zimbabwe and, at 19, she left the country for England.
“I got a head injury while training with the national team,” she said.
“I woke up in the hospital where I was kept overnight.
“No one from the team, or ZIFA, visited me while I was in hospital.
“I rejoined camp but was told not to train. I was later dropped from the travelling squad and no explanation was given.
“My parents had to use their own resources for me to have a head scan to assess the nature of the injury.
“I also did not even receive my allowance.”
She was an A-Level pupil at Queen Elizabeth Girls High School in Harare.
Feeling unwanted, Mhunduru joined her mother Patricia in England in 2003 to further her studies and today she is a holder of a BSc Computing and Business degree.
In England, Mhunduru joined Cambridge City ladies’ team which is in the English FA Women’s National League Division One.
In 2005, she moved to Cambridge United before a stint with Cambridgeshire County in 2007.
However, a knee injury blighted her stay there.
Anglia Raskin University team was her next port of call in 2012 before going back to Cambridge City in 2013 until her retirement this year.
“I tried to reconnect with ZIFA in order to continue playing for the national team, but communication was poor and that was the end of my international career,” said the former St Mary’s goalkeeper.
“I was lucky to have parents who were very understanding.
“They did not want me to play football, but did not stand in my way. They just encouraged me to study.
“Education has given me a chance. I specialise in Software Testing and I design websites in my free time.”
Women’s football has had its fair share of scandals with one player, the late Yesmore Mutero accusing one of the former Mighty Warriors coaches of infecting her with HIV and Aids.
“I think more women need to be encouraged to get into administrative and coaching roles to minimise chances of sexual abuse.
“Players are assets, as we have seen in recent years with the success of the United States female footballers and the creation of professional leagues in Australia and Europe.
“So, more emphasis needs to be put into their development, which enables them to focus on improving their skills to then be scouted for the big money teams that have dominated women’s football in recent years,” she said.
She remembers rumours during her days with the Mighty Warriors, of some weird relationships between players and coaches.
“I vaguely remember hearing rumours about girls who would be called into the coaches’ rooms, especially when we were in South Africa, and staying at the same hotel with all the coaching staff,” she said.”
“I did not see this myself though.”
While many people were surprised by images of the Mighty Warriors eating boiled matemba and muboora.at ZIFA Village in 2014, and lack of allowances following their participation at Olympic Games, for Mhunduru, it was just a reminder that things never change.
“I didn’t feel like we were supported by them (ZIFA) when I played.
“It seemed they only wanted the money that they would be given (for women football).
“If I had the same knowledge I have now I would look at myself using a holistic approach.
“A player needs to eat the right food, sleep well, be emotionally stable as well as have the best training facilities.
“These things help to develop the player physically and mentally.”
Mhunduru advised current players to further their education.
“Playing football doesn’t mean that you can’t do anything else, many young players I have seen live at academies, but they also study and become lawyers, software developers, accountants etc.
“When they retire, if they are not going to be involved in football they will need to work in another capacity,” she said.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter