Nyoni hails high school coach

Innocent Kurira, Sports Reporter
FORMER Highlanders’ roving left-back Dumisani “Savimbi” Nyoni has described his coach at Msiteli High School in the early 1980s Stephen Walsh as a master motivator and great lover of sport.

Walsh was among expatriate teachers brought in by the Government after independence to help transform western suburbs’ schools where local whites feared to tread.

The Scotsman wrote in the latest edition of Scottish football periodical Nutmeg, in which he narrates Bobby Clark’s time as Highlanders’ coach from 1983-1984, that the Msiteli’s football team he was tasked to coach during that period was star-studded with Super League players.

Nyoni, the late former Zimbabwe Saints and national team goalkeeper John Sibanda as well as former Saints right-back Garikai Rwodzi were among the prominent players Walsh coached at Msiteli.

The three were also national Under-20 players in the Msiteli team that also had players playing for Super League side Eagles.
Walsh said the players sidelined him and picked their own starting XI, decide on a game plan and deliver it, while he would slice oranges at half-time.

Nyoni said Walsh’s success with the Msiteli team was hinged on his prowess as a motivator rather than as a technical or strategic coach.

“Walsh was a person who loved sport and was a good motivator. At school, we played for nothing besides fulfilling the curriculum, but he made everything exciting because he was a good motivator. Everyone wanted to play football. He was neither a strict coach nor a strategist, but he had his way with people, which made it easy to play for him. His strength was in motivating the team,” said Nyoni.

“You would find that everyone in his squad got a chance to play no matter how big the squad was on a particular day. It was a matter of him organising games and telling us we are going to be playing which team and we would be available to play. He would always consult us on what to do, especially our captain Joseph Ndebele and a teacher called Mr Mubako. Those were the guys who sat and discussed what the team ought to do.”

Nyoni said besides Rwodzi and Sibanda that played for Saints, their Msiteli team also had Allen Ndlovu and Charles Murewa, who played for Eagles, Michael Nyoni , who was with Red Seal Rovers before later playing for Highlanders, and Busani Nkomazana from Division One side Sprinters.

“Due to the fact that most of us were playing for established clubs, we did not train at school. We met on match day and would check if any of us were injured and go for the match. We were untouchable and on fire, and I remember we went on a 21-match winning streak. We were winning by big scores and all Walsh would do was to scream on the touchline ‘come on boys’” Nyoni recalled.

At Msiteli, Nyoni played as a left-winger, but his coach at Highlanders the late Barry Daka switched him to left-back, a position he played with aplomb and cemented his legendary status at Bosso.

He was part of the great Bosso machine that won the BAT Rosebowl, Chibuku Trophy, Rothmans Shield, Heroes Cup, Independence Cup and the Castle Cup in 1986.

Individually, he was named the Young Player, Most Promising Player and Players’ Player of the Year at the club.

He was selected into the national team in 1988 where he played alongside the Friday “Breakdown” Phiri, Paul Gundani, Stanley “Sinyo” Ndunduma, Joel Shambo and Willard Khumalo (all deceased), as well as Stix M’tizwa, David Mwanza and Moses Chunga, among others.
He hung up his boots in 1996, not due to in­jury, but because of work com­mit­ments and ded­i­cated time to his pro­fes­sion as a prop­erty ne­gotiator. — @innocentskizoe