Online Reporter
DEAR NASH leadership,
As heads of secondary schools gather in Victoria Falls this week for the National Association of Secondary Heads (NASH) Conference, I hope you will take time to reflect on some of the issues that continue to affect school sport in Zimbabwe.
For generations, NASH has helped produce many of Zimbabwe’s finest sportsmen and sportswomen.
That contribution deserves recognition. But it also means the organisation has a responsibility to keep improving the systems that shape young athletes.
My observations come from more than 25 years of covering schools sport and working within it as an educator and coach.
The calendar needs another look.
The athletics programme in the first term was well-structured and flowed neatly into the Africa Junior Championships in April. The second-term ball games were a different story.
National festivals have been staged in Marondera, Mutare, Bindura and Masvingo, with Bulawayo and Gweru still to come.
That means schools, athletes and coaches have spent weeks travelling from one venue to another.
Would it not make more sense to hold one national festival where all age groups and both boys’ and girls’ competitions are played during the same week?
A learner would no longer represent two different age groups in the same season, such as playing Rugby Sevens in Marondera before turning out in the Under-20 Rugby Fifteens tournament in Mutare a week later.
The same approach could be adopted throughout the competition structure.
Clusters could be completed in early June, districts by mid-June and provincials before the end of June, leaving the final week of the second term for one national festival and much of July free for examinations.
The host city could rotate annually among provinces with the facilities to accommodate a festival of that scale.
Such a model would require careful planning, but those logistical challenges are worth exploring if they lead to a more efficient national programme.
Success should not become a financial burden. The current calendar also places enormous pressure on schools.
Take Chinhoyi High School as an example.
This year alone, the school travelled to Bindura for basketball, Marondera for Rugby Sevens and Mutare for Rugby Fifteens, with softball and baseball still to come.
Under a single-festival model, several teams could travel together, reducing transport and accommodation costs.
Funding structures also deserve review.
Teams representing clusters should receive support from cluster structures.
District representatives should be funded by district executives, provincial representatives by provincial executives, just as national teams are supported by the National Executive.
At present, the financial burden rests almost entirely with successful schools.
Based on average costs currently being incurred by schools, taking one team from cluster level to the national finals costs about US$4 000. That includes transport, meals, medical expenses, allowances, uniforms and equipment.
For schools such as Chipindura, which regularly qualify several teams for national finals, the annual bill can become enormous.
Success should not become a punishment.
Put athletes first
The present system also places unnecessary demands on talented youngsters. Many represent different age groups and even different sporting codes during the same season.
Some are selected for several national teams, leaving coaches planning around players who can ultimately represent only one team. A single national festival would reduce those clashes and allow athletes to focus on one code during each competition cycle. The standard of officiating also deserves attention. Qualified personnel should be appointed consistently from cluster level through to the national finals so that every team competes on a level playing field.
Work more closely with national associations
School sport and national association calendars need far better coordination.
The BancABC competition, for example, coincided with NASH provincial qualifiers, forcing some players to travel immediately after provincial matches to fulfil club commitments.
Handball held its Under-17 national finals months before regional qualifiers are due, while CAF African Schools Football competitions are played long after school tournaments have ended. Provincial finals should naturally become the selection platform for provincial teams, with districts and clusters serving the same purpose at their respective levels.
Protect the integrity of school sport
Age cheating continues to damage confidence in schools sport.
Holding competitions simultaneously would reduce opportunities for learners to appear in different competitions using incorrect documentation.
Where investigations establish wrongdoing, schools should face firm and consistent sanctions.
Just as importantly, NASH should communicate the outcomes of disciplinary processes openly. Transparency builds confidence in the integrity of the competitions and reassures schools that the rules apply equally to everyone.
Bring sponsors back
Schools sport once attracted strong corporate support across a range of disciplines.
Whether the decline in sponsorship is due to economic conditions, administrative issues or concerns about governance, it is a trend that deserves serious attention.
Rebuilding sponsor confidence should become one of NASH’s strategic priorities.
A single national festival would present a stronger commercial product and offer sponsors greater visibility and value for their investment.
It is an idea worth debating.
A final thought
NASH has given countless young Zimbabweans their first opportunity to compete, dream and grow.
That legacy is worth protecting.
No system is perfect, and no proposal is without challenges.
But if there is a better way to organise competitions, reduce costs, improve athlete welfare and strengthen confidence in school sport, then it deserves honest discussion.
Every decision NASH makes should ultimately serve the athlete.
Yours in sport,
Spencer Banda
Spencer Banda is a sportscaster, educationist and schools’ sports coach with more than 25 years’ experience covering schools sport in Zimbabwe.
Bongani Ndlovu