Online Reporter
Onward Gangata
Zimpapers Sports Hub
CAPS UNITED have won four in a row, and already that feels like a long run in a league where no team is managing to stay consistent.
That is the story of the 2026 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League so far.
Eight matches in, the title race is still wide open, not because teams are chasing a runaway leader, but because no one is holding form long enough to break away.
Makepekepe sit top with 19 points, just two ahead of Hardrock. But the numbers don’t tell the full story. Week after week, teams win, then stumble. Win again, then drop points.
Consistency has been hard to come by.
After the 2-2 draw away at Hardrock, Ngezi Platinum Stars coach Kumbirai Mutiwekuziwa did not hide his frustration.
“It is very important to have consistency, we need to work extra hard so that we win week in, week out, we need that consistency,” he said.
At FC Platinum, the message is the same.
Joel Luphahla has watched his side fail to close out games, dropping points from winning positions, including against MWOS.
“We seem to be drawing a lot of games, but we need to put up a string of wins and close the gap at the top, at the moment it’s win, draw, win, draw which is not good enough,” he said.
That pattern runs across the league.
Only eight teams have managed back-to-back wins this season. Five, Highlanders, TelOne, Agama, Manica Diamonds and FC Hunters, are still searching for a first victory.
CAPS United’s four-match run remains the longest so far. Defending champions Scottland have managed three in a row at one point, Hardrock the same, but neither sustained it.
And that is the question hanging over the league.
Why is it so hard to win consistently?
Is it because the competition has improved, or is something missing in the game?
Former Manica Diamonds coach Jairos Tapera, who once led his side to a 10-match winning streak, believes the balance has shifted.
“Maybe coaches and their teams are more competitive, and teams are more defensively organised so much that goals are not coming easily,” he said.
“We have improved our competition because foreigners are bringing another organisational dimension into our teams.”
Scottland coach Norman Mapeza, a four-time league championship winner, sees it as part of the game.
“Each and every season has its own challenges, that is the challenge most teams are having this year but that is the nature of football,” he said.
“It is still early in the season, teams will settle and become more consistent, even those that are still win-less.”
But there are other factors at play.
From one weekend to the next, teams move from good surfaces like Mandava or Heart Stadium to difficult pitches. Conditions change, rhythm breaks, and results follow the same pattern.
For some, that is part of the problem. For others, it is what makes the league what it is.
The unpredictability has kept the title race alive. It has kept teams in the conversation. It has also left coaches searching for answers.
For the fans, it cuts both ways.
No one is running away with the league. No one is building momentum.
And as the season takes shape, the question will not go away.
Is this a sign of a competitive league where anyone can beat anyone, or a league where no team is strong enough to take control?
