Chronicle Editor
IT was in 1996 when we became friends. I was in Grade Six and he was in Grade Seven.
We had played against each other in the Under-13s. I was at Support Unit and he was at Dynamos Juniors.
I was selected to be part of the uniformed schools in the Harare region qualifiers.
Our teacher or coach on the day of the tournament came excited telling us we would win the tournament because he had a special surprise for us.
As kids, we thought of a new kit because that was always something motivational. It turned out he was bringing the now late Norman Maroto to be part of the team.
He arrived and when he saw me he cheekily said; “ahhhh ndiwe mwana wemupurisa handiti (you are a son of a policeman)” of which I said all the boys here “vana vemapurisa (we are all sons of policemen)”.
And he corrected himself and said “unotambira kateam kaya kemapurisa (you play for that police football team)”.
We won the tournament with Maroto scoring for fun and we got a chance to represent Harare, a few weeks later.
Maroto did not come for the first day of the tournament and missed out on the vetting process, we were knocked out in the semi-finals and had to play in the third and fourth place match the next day.
Our chief striker arrived and was in the team.
Seven minutes in, he had scored a brace and one official found it odd to see a team with such a prolific striker not playing in the final.
He asked for the match to be stopped and to have Maroto checked to see if he had the nail polish that was used during vetting the previous day.
Unfortunately, he didn’t, so he was ejected from the match, but we kept our goals with one man down.
Fast forward to 2001, Maroto was scoring for fun for the Dynamos reserves. He got his chance in the first team and on his debut scored a brace against the now defunct Circle United as an 18-year-old.
He never looked back, he became a regular player.
After that match, I also got into the team and I owe it to Norman’s performance, versus Circle United.
He opened the doors for me, the coach, the teammates and the fans got excited to now see what the next young boy would do.
Norman made everyone believe in us.
In our Churchill High School /Dynamos WhatsApp group, for every birthday, Norman would post a photo with the birthday boy.
Just last week I said, “Lumumba, as Maroto was affectionately known, you have a photo with everyone except inini (me)”. In response he said “ Mboma ndiri kutouya kuBelgium for that. (I am coming to Belgium).”
Nhai Norman zvino photo yedu tichaita sei. (Now, what can we do about our photo).
You would call me whenever paita a hot football topic on Facebook and say haaa vanhu vanoda kutaura kwavasina kuswera. (People will always want to talk about things they do not understand).
My friend, I’m still waiting for your call undiudze kuti (tell) all the messages I’m receiving vanhu vari kungotaura kwavasina kuswera. (People are still talking about things they do not know).
July 11 is your birthday zvino tichapostei nhai. (What will we post?)
Ndiri kurwadziwa, kunyora kudai kuedza kudzinga the pain. (I’m pained in writing this, all in an effort to get rid of the pain).
NB: Maroto passed away Friday morning at the age of 40.
He reportedly complained of flu after attending a funeral last weekend before his untimely death at a Harare private hospital.
Known for his impressive performances with other local clubs, including Gunners and FC Platinum, Maroto was a stand-out player under Moses Chunga’s celebrated Kidznet project at Dynamos in the early 2000s.
Maroto’s impact as a striker is still felt today, as he holds the distinction of being the last local player to score over 20 goals in a single Premiership season, a feat he accomplished by netting an impressive 22 goals for Gunners in 2010.
While several players have come close in recent years, they have yet to break Maroto’s record. Ngezi Platinum’s Takunda Benhura won the Golden Boot in 2023, but with only 13 goals, while Nelson Mazivisa and Tendai Ndoro fell short with 18 goals each in 2012 and 2013, respectively. CAPS United’s Dominic Chungwa managed 17 goals in 2018.
In honour of Maroto’s legacy, social media has been flooded with tributes from his fans, colleagues and fellow players.
At the time of his passing, Maroto was serving as the Communications Officer for the Footballers Union of Zimbabwe, proving his continued commitment to the game he loved.
REST WELL MUDHARA CHIMBO!
Online Reporter