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Tadious Manyepo Sports Reporter
FORMER Premier Soccer League chief executive, Chris Sambo, says Zimbabwe Saints should do away with being a community team as that is what contributed to their demise some years ago.
The club, one of the traditional giants of the local game, are back in the trenches having already affiliated with the Southern Region Division One league for the forthcoming season.
Ownership wrangles and lack of sponsorship meant the team last played competitive football in 2016 in the Southern Region Division Two.
They were under coach Godfrey Paradza before one of the club’s surviving trustees, Vincent Pamire and board chairman Columbus Makumbe, spearheaded their revival this year.
Some benefactors bailed out the club who then met the criteria set by the ZIFA Southern Region Division One and were readmitted back a few weeks ago.
And, Sambo said the path which the likes of Pamire and Makumbe have taken should be applauded.
“It is important that the return of Zimbabwe Saints be under a different trajectory,” Sambo said.
“Zimbabwe Saints cannot continue to operate as a community team. Community teams in Zimbabwe have a record of failure.
Good examples are Arcadia United, Black Aces, Mutare United and Gweru United just to name a few.”
Sambo hailed Norton-based businessman Makumbe, and club secretary Martin Mabvira, for their active roles in leading Zimbabwe Saints’ revival story.
“The team has been under the able custody of their board chairman Columbus Makumbe and the dedicated Martin Mabvira.
“The team has its shareholders (who are about 1 500). It is this through this shareholding structure that the team should return to mainstream footbal.
‘’ ZIFA should not try to register the team under a different dispensation as that would not only be unlawful but would throw the return of the team into disarray.”
The team, which has attracted sound sponsorship from the corporate world, will be aiming to make it into the Premiership next term.
“I have no doubt that Columbus (Makumbe) will run the team on business lines. The team cannot continue to be run on a social basis which is what contributed to its demise.”
The Herald understands a number of stakeholders at Zimbabwe Saints are not happy that the club is “refusing” to name the person who is behind the recent payment of its affiliation fees into the Southern Region Division One.
It is also understood that a “48-page dossier” has already been prepared querying the recent developments at the club where “someone paid the club’s affiliation fees anonymously” for the team to play in the Southern Region Division One this year.
Norman Madzima, an avid fan of Zimbabwe Saints, said the team’s return to the Southern Region Division One was a welcome development.
“The most important thing here is for all the stakeholders of Zimbabwe Saints to come together and work together and they should avoid factionalism.
‘’I just hope their application to play in the Southern Region Division One was done above aboard with all the major stakeholders, including the shareholders of the club, being involved in this process.
“This thing of settling their personal vendettas in the courts should be a thing of the past.
“I will be one of the happiest people if people like Vincent Pamire, Gibson Homela, Elliot Manduna, Martin Mabvira, Ebson ‘Sugar” Muguyo, Columbus Makumbe and all the key stakeholders of the club bury the hatchet.’’
Zimbabwe Saints were one of the top teams in the country and produced several legends of the game including former Warriors captain Ephraim Chawanda, the late dribbling wizard Joseph Machingura, Ebson “Sugar” Muguyo (late), Max “Shaluza” Tshuma (late), Onius Musana (late), Gibson Homela, Andrew “Mai Maria” Kadengu, Agent “Ajira” Sawu, Henry “Bully” McKop, Godfrey Paradza, Melusi Nkiwane (late), Ronald “Gidiza” Sibanda and goalkeeper John Sibanda (late).
Online Reporter