Relief for Warriors as Zifa charter flight

Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter
WARRIORS coach, Zdravko Logarusic and his troops, will certainly be relieved to take a charter flight to Malawi this afternoon, following a week in which their preparations turned into a joke.

The Warriors are scheduled to face the Flames in an international friendly match at the Kamuzu Stadium tomorrow.

ZIFA announced yesterday they had ditched their earlier arrangement, to send the team to Blantyre by road, after announcing they had secured a charter flight.

There was a huge outcry from the football stakeholders, including the Footballers Union of Zimbabwe, who felt the 600km road trip was not fair on the players, some of whom had endured long flights to Europe.

The road trip usually takes about eight to 10 hours.

The Sports and Recreation Commission also insisted ZIFA, who recently received bailout from CAF and FIFA, should work on an alternative method of travel, using the resources at their disposal.

However, ZIFA spokesperson, Xolisani Gwesela, said they already had the option for a charter flight, because of the complications in securing commercial flights to Malawi, during this period of Covid-19 travel restrictions.

“It’s confirmed that the Warriors will now travel to Malawi aboard a charter flight.

“It’s a decision that the ZIFA executive committee took after reviewing the trip and analysing the distance from Harare to Blantyre by road.

“The executive committee saw it fit to charter a flight.

“ZIFA have not been ordered by the SRC, or by any Government arm, to take this route. It was one of the plans along with the option to use road travel.

“It is difficult to get commercial flights from Harare to Malawi, at this point, because of the Covid-19 travel restrictions,” said Gwesela.

The Warriors have stumbled from one problem, to another, during the week.

Coach Logarusic will have to do with a depleted squad, after most of his foreign-based players failed to come for the assignment, because of various reasons.

The Croatian coach yesterday extended invitations to the quartet of Ovidy Karuru, Denis Dauda, Tafadzwa Rusike and Divine Lunga to beef up his stocks.

The 54-year-old coach would have also wanted to see the likes of skipper Knowledge Musona, Marshall Munetsi, Tino Kadewere, Tendayi Darikwa, Adam Chicksen, Jordan Zemura, Victor Kamhuka, Macauley Bonne, Kundai Benyu, Prince Dube and goalkeeper Martin Mapisa.

But, he was forced to revise his options after the Europe-based players were ruled out of the game, which he wants to have an appreciation of his players, ahead of the back-to-back AFCON qualifiers against Algeria next month.

A number of letters, inviting the targeted players, were either sent late or ended up at the wrong clubs.

Loga had to turn back to the locally-based players, most of whom have been inactive, since the end of the previous season in November last year.

Moreover, the Croatian coach had indicated the home-based players will not be used for the Algeria game, which explained his insistence on having the foreign-based professionals, for the dress-rehearsal in Malawi. Among the regulars on Loga’s foreign-based wish-list, only Teenage Hadebe, Alec Mudimu, Marvelous Nakamba and Khama Billiat have made it.

Billiat, who missed his flight on Thursday evening after failing to satisfy the Covid-19 flight protocols in South Africa, was expected to join the squad last night.

“All the players and officials that are going to be involved in the trip to Malawi have been tested and have returned negative results.

“So, everyone has been cleared to travel,” said Gwesela.

The Football Association of Malawi revealed this week that they turned to chartering flights for the Flames to reduce the risk of contracting Covid-19, and ease travel challenges, as a result of travel restrictions.

The team took a charter flight to Lusaka for a friendly international against Zambia during the week. FAM president, Walter Nyamilandu, told The Nation newspaper the Flames will also travel to Burkina Faso, for their 2021 AFCON qualifier, using a chartered plane.

“It is very crucial that we ease their travel and reduce the risk of exposure of the travelling contingent to Covid-19,’’ he said.

“We are also mindful that Burkina Faso is far away; hence, the need to reduce fatigue, having come from a long lay-off.

“The home-and-away fixtures against Burkina Faso are back-to-back and we cannot afford to compromise our chances of winning.

“We are geared to improve the comfort and welfare of the players so that they are motivated to excel and bring honours to the country.” Nyamilandu said they also hiked game bonuses to show “we mean business because we want to qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations”.

Warriors squad for Malawi friendly

Goalkeepers: 1. Talbert Shumba (Triangle United)