malvernmugadzikwa
Eddie Chikamhi
There has been a growing shift in the balance of power within Zimbabwean football for the last couple of years.
The dominance in the league has shifted from the big cities to the smaller mining towns like Zvishavane, Mhondoro-Ngezi and now Shamva.
And, for the seventh year running, there is no chance for one of the Big Three — Dynamos, Highlanders and CAPS United — to reclaim their glory.
Instead, relatively new boys from the gold mining town of Shamva, Simba Bhora, hold the destiny of the 2024 Castle Lager Premiership race in their hands after taking a comfortable lead at the top.
The contest has since narrowed to a two-horse race between Simba Bhora and FC Platinum from Zvishavane.
FC Platinum are the only other team in the race with a mathematical chance of competing for the honours, as the league heads into the last five games of the campaign.
Simba Bhora boosted their odds when they beat Chicken Inn 1-0 before the FIFA break, taking their tally to 60 points after 29 rounds of matches.
To their advantage, nearest rivals FC Platinum faltered when playing a 2-2 draw at relegation-threatened Hwange, much to the delight of the Shamva side’s coach, Tonderai Ndiraya.
The platinum miners can only go to 66 points if they win all their remaining matches, which means Simba Bhora at most need seven points to wrap up the contest.
Highlanders, who are the third team in the race on 44 points, can only go as far as 59 points, which means they are already out of the reckoning.
The two leading teams have interesting fixtures in the run-in, with Simba Bhora set to travel to Harare for a date with Herentals this week.
They will then host giants CAPS United at Wadzanai where they are unbeaten all season.
Next up is Arenel (away), and then a top-of-the-table clash against FC Platinum is on the cards.
That match between the league’s two leading lights promises to be one of the matches of the season; that is if Simba Bhora would not have wrapped up the title race by the time they host FC Platinum.
“I think at this stage of the season, all the games are now difficult,” said Ndiraya in a cautious tone.
“Teams are now playing to place themselves better on the log standings.
“All the games that we have played have been difficult, but it’s now the home stretch, it’s getting more difficult.
“So, we take it step by step and make sure we collect as many points as possible going forward.”
FC Platinum have an interesting line-up of fixtures in the run-in.
They host Yadah this week and then play Dynamos (away), Bulawayo Chiefs (home), Simba Bhora (away) and round off with TelOne at home.
Their coach Norman Mapeza has not thrown in the towel yet.
He still hopes for a strong finish by his side and for Simba Bhora to stumble in their remaining matches.
“We are still pushing for the championship, I haven’t given up for the title,” said Mapeza before the trip to Hwange. “It’s not going to be easy for us.”
But for Simba Bhora, the title is theirs to lose.
They are unbeaten in their last 13 league games, which is a joint longest unbeaten run this season. They last tasted defeat back in June.
Ndiraya’s men have been in imperious form, especially at home where they have not lost a game this season.
Their impressive home run include 13 wins and two draws.
Simba Bhora have turned Wadzanai into a cauldron for visiting teams as giants like Dynamos, Highlanders and Manica Diamonds all fell.
By adding Chicken Inn to their list of casualties, Simba Bhora took a giant step towards their title ambitions.
Simba Bhora’s dominance has been reflected in Ndiraya getting voted Coach of the Month for the last three months.
The decision by the club authorities to pour funds, estimated to be over US$200 000, into the renovations at Wadzanai Stadium has proved to be the game changer.
“We haven’t lost at Wadzanai and we have kept our record intact. I think that has helped us so far this season,” said Ndiraya.
“Of course, the supporters have been behind the team all the way. They have been like that the whole season and we are happy.”
The club also invested heavily in playing personnel at the beginning of the season.
They brought on board the former FC Platinum duo of Walter Musona and Perfect Chikwende, Taimon Mvula and Junior Makunike (both from Dynamos), Wilson Mensah and Talbert Shumba (Triangle), Malvin Mkolo, Mthokozisi Msebe and Billy Vheremu (Bulawayo Chiefs), Harrison Masina from Hunters and Gift Saunyama from Black Rhinos.
They had 16 new signings last year, which means in two seasons, Simba Bhora invested in 27 new players.
Team manager Paul Ndombo argues that the players have performed to their optimum because of in-house motivation.
“We have managed to mobilise our players and to get them focused on the job at hand.
“The players are all happy and satisfied because their welfare is well taken care of by the club,” he said.
“Playing at home in Shamva has also helped a lot because home advantage is everything in football. The players know what is expected of them and they are doing their best.”
The 2024 league title is headed to a small mining time outside the big cities of Harare and Bulawayo once again, and this has been the trend since CAPS United lifted the silverware in 2017.
Online Reporter