Online Reporter
Tadious Manyepo
Zimpapers Sports Hub
MWOS coach Lloyd Mutasa saluted the gallantry shown by his players despite the 1-0 league defeat they suffered against bitter rivals Scottland at Ngoni on Saturday.
The Punters have had an erratic start to the season with the latest setback leaving them significantly behind the leading pack although it’s still early days in the marathon.
On Saturday, Mutasa deployed a depleted platoon against a full-strength Mabviravira before a packed arena in Norton.
Yet they still gave it their all before they were undone by a moment of sixes-and-sevens, conceding a turn-over goal from Khama Billiat following a swift counter.
Mutasa refused to lay the blame on his troops after MWOS marched to the turf slim due to several injuries and suspensions.
The 2025 Premier Soccer League runners-up were minus their midfield heartbeat Mathew Murambiwa and reliable striker Arthur Banda who are both nursing knocks.
Namibian forward Dawid Ndeunyema is still sidelined by the injury that he picked up against Dynamos three weeks ago, and midfield workhorse Jeremiah Makangira was serving a suspension. Matters weren’t helped either when Tadiwa Murasiranwa hobbled out with an early injury after just 20 minutes to further disarray Mutasa’s game plan.
“I should start by congratulating the winners, Scottland for the victory,” said Mutasa.
“Matches between MWOS and Scottland are always highly-charged and I think that has helped add value to the league.
“My players showed up and they did give it their all. It wasn’t an easy game yet they managed to match Scottland quite remarkably.
“We were even forced to change our game plan after Murasiranwa (Tadiwa) was forced out early.
“But I want to salute the lads for showing up throughout the afternoon playing against those mega stars like Knowledge Musona and Billiat.
“The youngsters were up there and with a bit of luck, we could have scored once or twice before they even got their goal.
“I am quite encouraged by the performance especially given we didn’t have four, five of our regulars in there.
“Injuries have hit us hard. We brought Ndeunyema knowing fully well how good he is. He scored once on his debut and got injured in his second game. He has not recovered yet. Add that to Murambiwa and Banda’s injuries. We were very depleted but the performance from the team was outstanding.” Mutasa said his team aren’t panicking yet as they are still well within reach of the leading pack.
“Our aim is to be better than we did last year,” Mutasa said.
“I think we had just picked the right form before this defeat to Scottland.
“But we can’t really say we are now dead and buried. We can still do wonders. We have the belief, and the players have shown that.”
