Online Reporter
Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
MUTARE Pool League (MPL) 2025 champions, Soul City, were crowned at a colourful ceremony held at MSKV Arcade in the city’s Chikanga high-density suburb, a function that reflected the orderly and professional way of doing things that has finally returned to the widely followed snooker league.
In recent years, MPL had become synonymous with embezzlement of funds, biased disciplinary and officiating hearings, while being elected into the league leadership structures had become an automatic ticket to loot affiliate clubs’ financial resources.
But 2025 marked a paradigm shift in the way of handling business, with the Harris Shoni leadership exuding, not only professionalism and sportsmanship, but also maturity in their conduct.
It was a refreshing sight to see MPL leadership giving a comprehensive breakdown of the income and expenditure report, something that was either kept as a secret or would be in shambles in years gone by.
Apart from winners, Soul City, all affiliate clubs received something for their participation in the 2025 season where star-studded Rozvi Pool Club ended second, while the Shingirai Chahwanda owned Why Why Pool Club came third.
In an interview on the sidelines of the prize presentation ceremony, Shoni spoke passionately about the need to restore confidence in MPL among club affiliates.
Shoni said the sport, which is badly crying for corporate partnership, has huge potential to help in the fight against drug and substance abuse.
“I think it is now clear to everyone how the association is also trying to curb the problem of drug and substance abuse by supporting our unemployed youths who make up the most numbers in our teams and some of them are actually now making a living through the sport.
“We could actually help more youths if the corporate world supports our initiatives. We are passionately pleading with the corporate world to come and partner us. I fact, pool as a game has great mileage in return for potential sponsors, simply because this game is for the common men and women in our communities,” said Shoni.
“We actually have one of our players form MPL who was in the previous Zimbabwe national team, Allan Changadzo, widely known in pool circles as The Headmaster.
Pool talent is abundant in Mutare and the game itself has gained popularity in recent years with players of different age groups and gender competition in this contest of precision in different public spaces across the city and province at large.
“This among other initiatives shows how as an association we are trying to nature our youths. It is against this background that we plead to the business community to come and partner the league, and we have no doubt that their resources will not be put to waste, and for them, it is a win-win situation where their brands and services are guaranteed of wider marketing audience,” said Shoni.
