Siphakeme .Mnindwa
Brandon Moyo, [email protected]
THE Zimbabwe senior men’s national rugby team has already begun their preparations for the 2025 Rugby Africa Cup, which serves as the direct qualifier for the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. The Sables are the reigning African champions, having won the 2024 Africa Cup—their first in 12 years. Another triumph at this year’s showdown will see them book their ticket Down Under.
Zimbabwe are pulling out all the stops in their quest for a World Cup appearance, their first since 1991. The locally based Sables have already begun working on their physicality with the team’s strength and conditioning coach, marking the beginning of their pre-season.
Speaking to Saturday Chronicle, Zimbabwe Rugby Union (ZRU) vice-president (North), Tapfuma Parirenyatwa, said the players are currently focusing on gym sessions, with no field work lined up for the time being in order to manage their workload.
“An early start is always important, and this is what the coach has done with the help of his technical team because the base of the Sables consists of senior players based in Zimbabwe.
Talk about your captain Hilton (Mudariki), vice-captain (Kudzai) Mashawi. We talk about Brian Makamure—they are all senior players based locally. So, instead of having them play rugby throughout the year, the idea is to have a proper pre-season, which is what the team is doing now.
“So, in January, there is no field work—just a gym programme run by our strength and conditioning coach, customised to each individual player. In February, they will introduce a few field sessions, and then in March, when the men’s local season starts, they will be match-ready. This way, by July, the players will not be fatigued and worn out but will be reaching the peak of their physical strength,” said Parirenyatwa.
The Sables were the first African team to feature in the Rugby World Cup, competing in the inaugural tournaments in 1987 and 1991, before Namibia overtook them. Since 1991, Zimbabwe have yet to return to the global showpiece, and Parirenyatwa said World Cup qualification remains at the top of their agenda.
He emphasised that they would do everything possible to ensure the strongest team is assembled for the trip to Uganda in July.
“This World Cup is so crucial. For any athlete, reaching the World Cup is the pinnacle of their career—let alone winning it. For anyone to qualify for a World Cup in any sport, it’s what they play for. It’s like the Olympics—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
There is nothing more important for Zimbabwean rugby this year than for the Sables to qualify for the World Cup. For now, our focus is solely on the Africa Cup.
“Everything we are doing in the next five months is aimed at fielding the strongest possible team in Uganda, to lift that Africa Cup and secure World Cup qualification. Of course, if we don’t win and finish as runners-up, we will have to go through the repechage—a play-off to determine the final qualification spot. So, for now, all our efforts are on the Africa Cup. If we win, we can then plan for end-of-year tours, funds permitting. But primarily, our goal is to have the best, strongest, and fittest squad representing Zimbabwe in Uganda,” he said.
In Uganda, the Sables will be competing against Algeria, Uganda, Namibia, Kenya, Senegal, and Ivory Coast, with a pending winner between Morocco and Tunisia completing the eight-team lineup. Only one automatic qualification spot is available, while the runners-up will proceed to the Africa/Asia play-off to compete for a place in the final qualification tournament.
Parirenyatwa added that, subject to budget constraints, a number of preparatory tours are being considered before the Uganda tournament.
“For games to be organised, there must be adequate funding. With the help of Lindsey (Earle) and The Sables Trust, we are assessing how much we can raise and working backwards with our budget. We don’t want a repeat of past situations where players were unable to be paid or properly supported during the Africa Cup.
“Our priority is to ensure that player wages are covered first and that we have a secure budget for the Africa Cup. Any additional funds raised will then be allocated to matches—possibly travelling to Zambia, hosting Zambia, or arranging trips to South Africa to play club teams there. The key is to guarantee that when the Africa Cup arrives, we can take care of our players and facilitate a two-week training camp where both locally and foreign-based players can come together. Once that budget is in place, we can then plan warm-up matches,” said Parirenyatwa.
He also stressed the importance of supporting the growth of women’s rugby in Zimbabwe, highlighting the need for better resources.
“The women’s team has immense talent and more athletes than the men’s side. If they had even half the resources that the men’s team has, I believe they would make us very proud,” he said.
Last year, the Sables’ World Cup qualification bid received a significant boost with the arrival of former Australia centre Kyle Godwin and former Wallabies Under-20 fly-half Ian Prior.
-@brandon_malvin
Online Reporter