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Davison Bhunu Sports Reporter
MUTARE football fans could finally get an opportunity to watch Premiership action in their backyard this coming season with renovations of Sakubva progressing well.
The stadium was condemned by the ZIFA First Instance Body two years ago.
Manica Diamonds, the only team which was in the top-flight last season, and Dongo Sawmill, the season before, had to travel 90 kilometres to host their opponents at Vengere in Rusape. But, this term, with Manica Diamonds being joined by Tenax in the top-tier, the Mutare City Council have vowed to revamp the venue to the required standards by the time the season gets underway.
The 2020 Premiership season is scheduled to begin next month. Council spokesperson, Spren Mutiwi, is confident they will complete the requisite renovations at the stadium.
Areas noted by the FIB include the complete re-construction of the precast wall, which was vandalised by fans a few years ago, as well as the improvement of drainage and ablution facilities.
“We expect the construction work to be completed before the Premier Soccer League season kicks off and we have already started increasing artisans to ensure that we meet the deadline. The artisans have since covered 170 metres of the perimeter wall and, with the number of artisans increasing each day as the council continues to engage more people to speed up the renovations, we are optimistic that we will meet the deadline,” said Mutiwi.
Online Reporter
Bongani Ndlovu