Online Reporter
Zimpapers Sports Hub
WALTER MUSONA walks through this moment with the kind of joy only history can give.
A year ago, he lifted the league trophy with Simba Bhora. Today, he stands at the centre of Scottland’s first title, a captain who carried a brand new team all the way to the summit.
His voice carries a mix of relief and wonder.
The midfielder knows what this means for a club that did not exist in the top-flight a year ago, and for a community that believed long before the rest of the country paid attention.
“The setup at Scottland is very professional and that is the reason everyone thrived,” he said. “It became clear early in the campaign that the newcomers weren’t here just to survive. They were organised, bold and committed to chasing something far bigger than respectability.
“It was never going to be easy playing in the league for the first time as a team. But I tell you it is the professionalism at this team that inspired us.”
Musona remembers how uncertain it all felt when the players first gathered.
“Of course we had a lot in terms of experience but it was just a collection of players converging at a team. We were never a team at all,” he said. “What followed was the transformation that carried Scottland from hopeful debutants to champions.
“The environment we were operating in made it very easy for us to gel in the field of play and off it.”
Musona keeps expressing gratitude.
A project of this scale does not work without someone daring to dream loudly.
“I would like to thank club president Pedzai ‘Scott’ Sakupwanya for coming up with a project like this. We are very excited after delivering the league title,” he said.
For Musona, the personal milestone hits just as hard as the team’s success.
“Personally, I am feeling great and lucky to have achieved the feat,” he said.
He laughs softly when he remembers the weight of expectation that came with the captain’s armband.
“When I was named captain, yea look, with so many senior players in the team, I felt I had a huge challenge ahead,” said Musona.
Khama Billiat, Knowledge Musona, Kevin Moyo, Tymon Machope, these are names that carry their own authority.
Leading a group like that forces a man to grow.
“But big up to my mates for letting me lead them throughout the season.
“I am thankful to them. I had so many senior players like Khama Billiat, my brother Knowledge, Kevin Moyo and Tymon Machope, among others in the team,” said Musona.
“I had to mature and I am glad everything went on well and here we are.”
And here they are indeed. Champions in their very first season. A club that carried Mabvuku’s hopes with pride, pushed through pressure and refused to blink when the title started calling their name.
Scottland will soon gather again for their annual awards night. After that, the trophy leaves the boardroom and heads to the people, lifted high in an open bus procession that will sweep through the streets and seal a season that already feels mythical.
For Musona, for Scott, for the players who shaped this story, this title is more than a medal. It is a beginning wrapped in glory.
