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Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter—
HIGHLANDERS and How Mine coaches believe their crunch quarter-final match at Ascot Stadium this afternoon will be more psychological than tactical. The two sides were drawn together during the launch of the eight team tournament, sponsored to the tune of $500,000 by mobile phone operator, NetOne through their One Wallet package. The match comes barely two weeks after the two Bulawayo rivals met in a league match at Barbourfields Stadium with Amahlolanyama finally breaking their league duck, winning 2-1 through goals from Gabriel Nyoni and a beauty from right back Simon Munawa. The gold miners got their face saver courtesy of Edmore Muzanenhamo.
Prior to that, How Mine had completed a league double over their more fancied and decorated opponents although Bosso turned on the power and beat the gold miners 3-0 in the Mbada Diamonds Cup.
“We are playing How Mine at the most crucial time where they have not won since we beat them and so they will come at us with all they got. For that reason, we have been working on the psychological part of the players because I believe that is where the game will either be lost or won,” said the Highlanders mentor Kelvin Kaindu.
He said games against How Mine are always tough and in all the matches that they have lost, they have showed character to fight to the end.
“It’s a neutral venue tomorrow and probably the better team will win,” said Kaindu.
The Zambian also appealed to the 12th player, their ever patriotic supporters to turn out in their numbers and turn Ascot Stadium into a Highlanders home ground.
“The support that the fans have been giving us is just awesome and I call upon them to do the same tomorrow (today). They have been our pillar of strength, our driving force especially when things are not going according to plan,” he said.
His counterpart, Philani Ncube, said while they have natural respect for Highlanders, they are going to Gweru to compete but like Kaindu, said the game is more of a mindset than anything.
“There is a need for us to psyche up the boys, one because of our last results and secondly because of the nature of the match. There is a lot of money at stake here,” said Ncube who has been in Harare for a coaches’ instructor course.
He remains one of the tactically gifted coaches on the domestic scene with a talent for changing his team’s game plan to suit prevailing conditions.
He will miss dependable midfielder Mernard Mupera who is in a plaster following a tackle by Bosso’s Joel Ngodzo.
Winners of the cup will pocket $80,000, losing finalists $60,000 while losing at the semi-final and quarter-final stage has a purse of $30,000 and $20,000 respectively.
In another quarter-final match pencilled for tomorrow, Harare rivals Dynamos and Caps United lock horns at the National Sports Stadium in a game that surely brings the quarter-finals curtain to an exciting end.
The two capital city giants are meeting for the second time in as many weeks and with tomorrow’s match a must win game, the winner will have a natural psychological advantage heading into their return league match.
Meanwhile, all NetOne Super 8 matches have to end in 90 minutes as there is no extra time. The teams will head straight for the dreaded shootouts if they remain deadlocked after regulation time.
Online Reporter