adminNgoni Dapira
MUTARE Sports Club’s dream of a top five finish was cut short as the National Rugby League semi-finals set for tomorrow (Saturday) at Old Georgians Club in Harare will only be for the top-four teams on the log as of Week 9. The top-flight league failed to see through all the second-round matches due to financial constraints citing that the NRL coffers had run dry.
The Shumbas that were effervescent and spirited to win all their remaining six matches in the second round will unfortunately settle for a seventh place finish with nine-points as of Week 9.
They were trailing Western Panthers (14) and Old Miltonians (13) on position five and six respectively.
The four teams that will take part in NRL semi-finals showdown tomorrow are the defending champions Old Hararians, Old Georgians, Matabeleland Busters and Western Panthers.
Log leaders, Harare Sports Club unfortunately, forfeited their match saying they had no players to field on the day due to the long wait ever since the league was abruptly cancelled on September 6.
This consequently pushed up WP into the top four.
OH will take on WP, while hosts OGS will battle it out with Matabeleland Busters.
The winners will automatically qualify for the finals and the losers will play in the third-place play-offs scheduled for November 1.
NRL chairman, Noddy Kanyangarara, said the top-four teams would clash just to wrap up the season and start working towards the 2015 season.
“We are supposed to have our semi-finals this weekend. We have decided to play the semi-finals because we need closure in the league. We need to identify a winner and wrap up the season.
“We are using the nine weeks that we played to determine the teams that will play in the semi-final,” said Kanyangarara.
He said they were hoping to hold the finals on November 1, but the dates were still to be confirmed due to the Seven’s series that kicks-off that same weekend.
The 2014 NRL season will no doubt be unforgettable due to its financial shortcomings in the absence of a main sponsor following the withdrawal of Lion Lager.
It will cast a shadow of doubt on next year’s season with many prophets of doom foreseeing the end of the NRL, going back to the social leagues as it was before 2009.
The nine teams that were in the 2014 league respectively are HSC, OGS, OH, MB, WP, OMS, MSC, Gweru Sports Club and Zvishavane Bulls.
Online Reporter