Online Reporter
Langton Nyakwenda
Zimpapers Sports Hub
FROM the onset, Scottland coach Tonderai Ndiraya had to fight a battle on two fronts.
On one end, he had to please his employers, who invested massively in an exciting football project that has taken the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League by storm.
Ndiraya also has to manage a star-studded dressing room oozing with egos of varying magnitude.
Reigning Soccer Star of the Year Walter Musona, crowd favourite Khama Billiat, veteran fullbacks Ronald Pfumbidzai and Godknows Murwira, the unpredictable Peter Muduhwa and 2024 Golden Boot winner Lynoth Chikuhwa, all in one dressing room.
Blessed with an expensively assembled squad that had a decent pre-season in Zambia, Ndiraya carried lofty expectations on his shoulders.
Scottland were expected to hit the ground running in their debut season, but inconsistent results in the early stages of the season threw a lot of things into serious doubt.
A couple of weeks ago, Ndiraya’s future at Mabviravira, as Scottland are affectionately called, came under scrutiny.
Scottland’s capacity to win the league title in their debut season was also questioned.
The Mabvuku side had managed three points out of a possible nine between Week Six and Week Nine, sparking some concerns about whether Ndiraya was the right man to deliver a historic league title for Scottland.
Ndiraya pleaded for patience, insisting that his team would start firing after Match Day 10.
“We assembled quality players, but we are in the process of getting the team to understand each other,” Ndiraya said.
“We anticipated a very difficult first seven games because a team of stars takes some time to gel.
“We are in a process of making sure we build an efficient machine, one that I believe will start firing from Week 10,” Ndiraya told Zimpapers Sports on April 27, a day after Scottland’s goalless draw against ZPC Kariba at Nyamhunga.
That draw was the newboys’ third on the trot, after two stalemates against Yadah and FC Platinum at Rufaro.
Since then, Scottland have posted three consecutive wins against Herentals, Dynamos and defending champions Simba Bhora.
They are now second on the log with 22 points, one behind leaders MWOS, going into Match Day 12 of the 2025 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League.
Mabviravira are the most inform team, going by statistics from the last five rounds.
Scottland have picked up 11 points out of a possible 15 and have the best return.
Log leaders MWOS have registered nine points in the last five rounds, the same as Highlanders, while Simba Bhora have picked up eight points.
After Match Day Seven, Scottland had managed 12 points out of a possible 21, which translated to a 57 percent success rate.
To Ndiraya’s credit, his team have improved that rate to 67 percent, as they now have 22 points out of a possible 33.
“We are slowly finding our feet,” Ndiraya told Zimpapers Sports Hub yesterday.
Scottland face Manica Diamonds in one of the headline fixtures of Matchday 12 at Sakubva on Saturday.
“It has been step by step from day one.
“The good thing is we have not been far away from the top.”
Ndiraya, however, reckons it is still “too early to talk about the title race.”
Scottland will be making only their third trip outside Harare in 12 games.
They have played nine of their games at Rufaro so far.
“It’s not going to be easy playing away from home.
“We have respect for Manica Diamonds, they are seasoned campaigners in the league.”
The 47-year-old gaffer has been rotating his squad lately.
Last weekend, Michael Tapera came off the bench and scored a memorable brace as Scottland beat Simba Bhora 2-0 at Rufaro.
There are times when Ndiraya has also benched Billiat and Musona, paving the way for unheralded players like Emmanuel Saidi. Fullbacks Gareth Madhake, Pfumbidzai and Murwira have also been rotated in recent weeks.
“We are beginning to reap the rewards of squad depth.
“We have been rotating the squad to freshen things up.
“It’s good to have some players who were not starting coming on and giving us results.
“Remember, we have a lot of good players in the squad, so we have to rotate so that everyone is happy,” added Ndiraya.
On Saturday, he squares up against one of the league’s oldest coaches, Jairos Tapera, who is turning 59 this year.
However, Manica Diamonds have been struggling and are win-less in their last six matches, with five draws and a loss.
But the Gem Boys always put on decent shows whenever they play at Sakubva.
Given the hype that has followed Scottland, a huge crowd is expected at the Mutare venue on Saturday.
“Obviously, we expect a colourful atmosphere at Sakubva.
“We have to give fans a good game,” said Ndiraya.
Although he remains cautious and calculative, the championship-winning gaffer thinks Scottland are now getting into the groove.
“Because this was a newly assembled squad of stars coming from different teams and areas, it was obvious we would struggle for cohesion in the early stages of the season.
“It’s obvious, there will be a lot of twists and turns between now and the next few weeks.
“Remember, this is a marathon, it’s about how you finish not how you start”.
