Online Reporter
Langton Nyakwenda-Zimpapers Sports Hub
THE Premier Soccer League have announced that there will be no mid-season break due to a congested calendar with Match-day 18 starting this afternoon.
“We reached an agreement with the clubs during the AGM that we are facing a congested calendar and we cannot afford the luxury of going on a lengthy break because it would mean we would have to play a large number of mid-week matches,” said PSL chief executive Rodwell Thabe.
As the second term begins, the spotlight this afternoon will fall on veteran coach Saul Chaminuka as returns to Rufaro to face Dynamos for the first time since he was sacked by the Harare giants in July last year.
Chaminuka struggled in his tenure at Dynamos and looked to be dragging them into relegation until the Glamour Boys wielded the axe.
He is in now in charge of TelOne, who just like DeMbare last year, are battling to climb out of the relegation zone.
Whether Chaminuka can use his insight of Dynamos to lead the WI-FI Boys remains to be seen, but the Glamour Boys have their own pressure to bounce back to winning ways after letting possible victories against Manica Diamonds and FC Hunters slip into draws.
While Dynamos face TelOne, the main attraction of the weekend is the blockbuster clash between log leaders Scottland and second-placed Hardrock at Rufaro tomorrow.
Mid-season report
It has, however, been a first half of contrasting fortunes for many teams and their coaches.
After he was given the chance to run the rule on his team’s performance during the first half of the season, Triangle United coach Lloyd Chitembwe delivered a football lecture.
His side anchor the 18-team table at the half-way stage.
Soon after Triangle suffered another debilitating 0-3 defeat against log leaders Scottland at Rufaro on Thursday, Chitembwe spoke about the game’s dynamics.
“Usually in football, a result is down to so many things coming together,” he said.
“In football if you are to achieve you really need players of the right quality, technical and mental attitude to understand what it takes to be successful.
“I think this is our biggest shortfall,” added Chitembwe, who won the 2016 championship with CAPS United.
Reports say Chitembwe has been given an ultimatum.
He has to pick up three points in Triangle’s next two games or face the sack, starting with tomorrow’s fixture at ZPC Kariba.
Triangle are commonly known as Sugar Sugar Boys, but there has been nothing sweet at the Lowveld side.
With just nine points out of a possible 51, they have a 17 percent success rate after 17 games.
“It has been a very difficult period for me ever since I joined Triangle, difficult in the sense that, obviously results have been eluding us.
“If you are to achieve you really need players of the right quality. This is not what I really expected,” Chitembwe.
At the opposite end of the log, Scottland are oozing with quality.
They are at the top of the log with 34 points from a possible 51, which is 66 percent success rate.
For finishing top at the halfway stage, Scottland players received US$5 000 each.
Mabviravira concluded the first half of the season with the best defence, having conceded just six goals in 17 matches. Scottland lost once, against Simba Bhora and have 13 clean sheets, the most by any club at the halfway stage.
Kevin Moyo, Peter Muduhwa, Kwake Twala and Moses Shidolo have featured prominently at the back for Scottland.
The deadly trio of Knowledge Musona, Khama Billiat and Walter Musona has been influential upfront.
Scottland coach Norman Mapeza described his team’s performance in the first stanza as “up and down”.
“Sometimes if you look at the games we played here in Harare we didn’t do much well because there are so many draws, we also lost once here at home, but away we were doing much better, our wins came from away games.
“But look this is football, sometimes what you want doesn’t happen,” said Mapeza.
Debutants Hardrock were undoubtedly one of the top teams in the first half.
They have reignited football in Kwekwe, thanks to their state of the art facility called Chahwanda.
Hardrock are the league’s top scorers with 24 goals and are second on the log behind Scottland.
Free scoring Washington Navaya has scored a third of that tally.
Navaya has scored eight goals and trails leading scorer Ralph Kawondera of Herentals by a single goal.
They still wait for the ruling on their abandoned match against Dynamos on May 24.
The was abandoned due to crowd trouble with the scores at 1-1.
However, the early weeks of the season belonged to CAPS United who led the log for several weeks before they dislodged by Hardrock who were then overtaken by Scottland on Match Day 17.
Makepekepe are now third on the log after picking up just one win in their last six matches.
Ngezi Platinum Stars were also one of the main stories of the first half.
Despite a transfer ban, Madamburo went on for 14 games without tasting defeat until they were brought down by Dynamos.
Ngezi coach, Kumbirai Mutiwekuziwa, has been lauded for his team’s sleek passing and energetic type of play.
“Looking at how the players have played I am very happy with their character and I am very confident that they can take it to the world.
“So, it is going to be up to us or to the team to compete for the championship with such solid competition that they are showing week in wee out,” said Mutiwekuziwa.
Last season’s runners up MWOS finished the first half in seventh place, an unfamiliar position for a team of their potential who wrote a Cinderella story last year when going unbeaten for 16 games.
However, coach Lloyd Mutasa believes his boys will rise in the second half.
“It was a matter of not getting into the right groove.
“But I’m sure if we get another win, two or three wins, we will have a better momentum to go forward,” said Mutasa.
Castle Lager Premiership Fixtures:
Today: FC Platinum v Ngezi Platinum Stars (Mandava), Simba Bhora v Manica Diamonds (Wadzanai), MWOS v Hunters (Ngoni), Chicken Inn v Herentals (Barbourfields), Dynamos v TelOne (Rufaro)
Tomorrow: ZPC Kariba v Triangle United (Nyamhunga), Scottland v Hardrock (Rufaro), Bulawayo Chiefs v Highlanders (Barbourfields), AGAMA v CAPS United (Wadzanai).
