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left their seats in the VIP Enclosure to read the Riot Act to their battered troops in the dressing room during that break. The directors were livid, and rightly so.
Never had a group of men, representing CAPS United in the annual two-part battle against Dynamos, the team that is the symbol of the ultimate rival and eternal enemy, surrendered so meekly, capitulated so badly and raised the white flag, without putting up a fight, in this manner.
Goals by Farai Mupasiri and Guthrie Zhokinyi in the first half had laid the foundation for a routine DeMbare victory and, as feared, the CAPS United response never materialised and Cliff Sekete added a third for their biggest win, in this series, in 11 years after a similar 3-0 win in 2001.
Tomorrow, the Harare Derby returns to the National Sports Stadium and for CAPS United, it provides another grand opportunity to end their winless run against their rivals, dating back to April 2009, when Nyasha Mushekwi’s double at Rufaro powered the Green Machine to a thoroughly deserved victory.
There is a feeling, within the CAPS United camp, that this is their golden moment to stop the rot and it’s not only the Green Machine players who have been bullish, in the countdown to this epic game, but also their fans whose optimism levels have risen a notch in recent weeks.
Even those who are pessimistic, who believe the repeated pounding in the past four years has left a severe psychological strain on their players it would be too much to expect them to emerge out of its web of paralysis and swing a knockout punch on their rivals, have reason to be cheerful.
They tell you there won’t be that meek surrender, there won’t be that sensational first-half collapse, there won’t be that bullying that pushed their players into a shell last season and there won’t be that hiding, as was the case in their last two matches, which produced a 6-0 aggregate scoreline that had a ring of Wimbledon, as in a tennis score, than football.
They will tell you times have changed, where in their corner last year stood a group of frightened men, so impotent they wouldn’t have chased away a church mouse, now stand tigers who are pumped up for battle and have been to Gibo and won and been to How Mine and won.
They will tell you where their team last year was being held back by age, quickly running out of gas when given a good run by their opponents and unable to launch a comeback in the second half as was the case that day at the giant stadium, it is now being fueled by the youthful enthusiasm that flows in its ranks.
They will tell you they now have new players like Ronald Pfumbidzai, the exciting wing-back with a cultured left foot whose comfort on the ball is so natural he has evoked memories of either a Cephas Chimedza, at his very prime, or a Joseph Kamwendo, once he had settled to life in a city that was so different from Blantyre.
It’s this unique thing about the Harare Derby, where there will always be a window of hope for the other team no matter the circumstances, which makes it special and such a drawcard, for so many fans that we now have some supporters who only come to the stadium twice a year – just for the Derby.
That the biggest football game in the capital is still attracting such massive interest, from its loyal followers and even growing a new base of fans among those who were too young to have seen Joel Shambo or Kenneth Jere in action, is testimony of its enduring appeal as a brand that will certainly never die.
That this game is still writing headlines in the local newspapers, from Monday to Sunday, across all the mainstream papers and dominating debate on the social media sites, drawing in contributions from people who now live in far-away lands and might have seen their last Derby a dozen years ago before they left home, is a demonstration of its unique brand powers.
That this game continues to draw in the crowds, there were 40 000 by conservative estimates the last time it was played at the giant stadium in August, even against a background of pathetic gate controls that blew the patience out of thousands of fans who returned home, and all the battering it has received from the pinch masters of Super Diski who have perfected the art of stealing its best talent, is testimony of its special status.
That this game continues to woo us, even when we now know that chances of seeing the battle royale of the ‘80s when the Shambos and Chungas created memories, enough to last a life-time, are now as slim as expecting Gishon Ntini to conduct an interview in sign language, given the way he loves to hear his words making an impact, controversial or otherwise, underlines its special hidden qualities. That this game continues to fascinate us and becomes a subject for so much in terms of written material, factual or otherwise, spoken material, right or wrong, a cocktail of jokes, some good ones and some sick ones, and we spend an entire week making it the common denominator of our discussions, speaks volumes about its unique character.
That a poor Harare Derby, and there have been a fair number of such matches in recent years, does not destroy the interest in this showdown but, rather, lights up our imagination and pushes us deeper into our fantasy world, where we draw cold comfort from the hallucination that the next one will certainly provide a better package, underlines the grip that it has on us.
Because of that, the CAPS United family have a right to believe, despite the blowout of the last one when their team was pummelled into submission, despite the fact that they haven’t beaten the Old Enemy in a league match since April 2009, that the Harare Derby will provide another twist to its tale and as long as that is possible, anything can happen. Because of that, the DeMbare family have a right to believe, despite the fact that fate has been kinder to them in the last four years and it was time for it to smile to others, in this case their opponents Makepekepe, it will be business as usual, come tomorrow, and the Harare Derby would be what it has been in the last 50 months – a football match between Dynamos and CAPS United which, at the end of the 90 minutes, is always won by the Glamour Boys.
A Legacy Of Greatness
For all the fighting that these two giants have done, in the name of the league games over three decades, the two standout games for me did not come in the marathon but, surprisingly, in the Africa Day Cup – both at Rufaro, one in May 1988 and the other in May 1994.
CAPS United fans will never forget the events of May 16, ’88, and those who were at Rufaro that day have always taken it as a privilege that they were given a chance to be witnesses of such a remarkable feat by their men who rose beyond the call of mere mortals, clearly punched above their weights and flew into the zone of immortals.
The semi-final of the National Foods Africa Day Cup had looked pretty much a routine duel between CAPS United and Dynamos and the only striking part of this game was that Gift M’pariwa, the sharp-shooting forward who had made his name at DeMbare, was in the Green Machine line-up.
It’s like the sight that will confront the CAPS United fans at the National Sports tomorrow when Washington Pakamisa, who made his name as a trusted gunman at the Green Machine, lines up to face his old club in the colours of the Old Enemy and leading the line of their attack.
Shacky Tauro was the destroyer-in-chief that day, scoring a hat-trick, after having opened the scoring in the 16th minute, Anthony Kambani scored a brace, including a screamer, Never Chiku got on the scoreline and, to rub salt into the gashing wounds of the DeMbare fans, M’pariwa was also on target for good measure.
But the conductor of that orchestra, on a red-letter day for the Green Machine, was Joel “Jubilee” Shambo who paraded his full repertoire of skills in an amazing midfield display, coming in the weeks that he had been dropped from the national team, and was the creative hub of five of the goals.
Sadly Shambo didn’t live long enough to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of that golden moment, that special occasion when time somehow stood still and, on that grand stage, the man they called The Headmaster turned the ground that the Glamour Boys had called their fortress into a killing field, with every goal plunging a fresh dagger into their shattered hearts.
Neither did Shacky Tauro, Chinyaride, Bere, Mr Goals, whatever nickname you could choose the impact was the same, live to celebrate the 25th anniversary of that special moment when his hattrick floored the ultimate enemy in a magnificent display of goal-scoring prowess that bordered on both brilliance and brutality.
Neither did Gift M’pariwa, Ghetto Boy, Muduso, whatever nickname you could choose, who represented the ultimate Judas Iscariot, in that successful invasion by the Green Machine, but would return for a final dance with his boyhood team in later years.
Neither did Never Chiku, Maswerasei, as in that rogue and elusive Kariba man-eating lion, and not in the soulful rhythm of Sulu Chimbetu’s beautiful lyrics, ‘Maswerasei MaDeMbare, Taswera, Maswerasei, Maswerasei Makepekepe, Taswera, Maswerasei, Newe Wasu Edgar Waseraseiko?”
But they will never be forgotten, not by the Green Army, and that destruction of Fortress Glamour Boy 25 years ago will remain a very special moment for those who were witnesses, and remain story tellers, of what happened that day.
The Nicoz Africa Day Cup final in 1994, where Dynamos would produce a fightback so incredible it had to be seen to be believed, was a standout game and produced half-a-dozen goals, including two decisive ones, for the Glamour Boys, in time added on.
It was the sixth anniversary of that massacre, in the same month, in the same tournament and at the same stadium and the CAPS United fans were in full voice, in a capacity crowd that stretched Rufaro’s holding capacity to the limit, for an afternoon that promised so much and delivered on all fronts.
The first leg, hosted by CAPS United, had ended 1-1, and when Mphumelelo Dzowa (25th min) and Joe Mugabe (38th min) gave them a 2-0 lead and a 3-1 aggregate advantage at the break, with two away goals in the kit, it appeared Mission Impossible for Dynamos. Even if they scored twice, in the second half, they would still lose on away goals rule.
But no one told Mhofu and his men that this was Mission Impossible and, cue in Simon Chuma, with an amazing display of wing wizardry, in that final 45 minutes as good as you will ever see at any game and in any league or at any stage and, boy oh boy, come back the Glamour Boys did.
They say these are matches where one can make or break his career and, on that hot afternoon, Simon Chuma made his mark and, 10 minutes after the break, he drew the foul that resulted in a penalty converted by Francis Shonhayi.
In the 72nd minute, DeMbare were level, Chuma dancing his way into space, thanks to some superb footwork and a pace that kept giving him an edge, and then creating room to deliver a cross that was powered past Brenna Msiska by the impressive Tauya Murewa.
At 2-2, CAPS United were still winning, on away goals rule, and they appeared to have withstood the barrage of attacks until, three minutes into time added on when, once again, the brilliant Chuma teased his marker on the right and his cross was headed home by Hope Chihota.
To say Rufaro exploded would be an understatement and some were still celebrating, and crying, when Vitalis Takawira made it four, after Msiska had spilled Murewa’s effort, and one of the greatest comebacks, in the duels between the two giants, had been completed.
Peter Fanwell, Kaitano Tembo, Claudius Zviripayi, Ernest Masango, Tichaona Murewa, Francis Shonhayo, Simon Chuma, Memory Mucherahowa, Tauya Murewa, Hope Chihota, Vitalis Takawira and substitutes Henry Chari and Mugove Munyorovi were the men who stood to be counted on that day. Brenna Msiska, Mphumelelo Dzowa, Carlos Max, Cheche Billiat, Tobias Sibanda, Silver Chigwenje, Morgan Nkathazo, Joe Mugabe, Tonderai Mutambikwa, Basil Chisopo and Gift Mudangwe were in the CAPS United corner that day.
That this latest Harare Derby comes in May, exactly 19 years after that iconic Africa Day Cup showdown in ’94 and exactly 25 years after that unforgettable showdown in ’88, will provide faint hopes that it could explode into something very, very special tomorrow.
Who Will Win This Derby?
CAPS United might have lost at home against Shabanie and Buffaloes but they don’t need any incentives to play their best football in this game and one gets a feeling that there is this belief in their camp that this is their moment.
The advantage they carry is that they come into the game as underdogs again, if they lose it’s going to hurt but it’s unlikely to trigger an earthquake because it’s something we have seen a number of times in recent years.
That should give them their freedom to express themselves and their win against Triangle was huge, as big as they come, and that they managed to get all points, when the hosts were the better team, made their achievement even more special.
The point being that if they can get all three points, when not playing at their best in Triangle, what about if everything falls into place, all systems work according to plan, Tafadzwa Dube plays a blinder again, Chivheya and Magariro form a Green Wall, Hardlife Zvirekwi sparkles in midfield and Nyamandwe, Chungwa (their secret weapon) and Fiyado fire upfront?
Nyamandwe has always played well against Dynamos, his physical game gives the short DeMbare central defensive wall all sorts of problems, and the pace of Chungwa and the width that will be provided by Zvirekwi, if he passes the fitness test, makes them dangerous. But have they exorcised their psychological demons, which always come into play when they face Dynamos, and that could make a huge difference.
Dynamos are unbeaten this season and it’s a credit to their fighting spirit that they have gone this far without losing a game and you feel they come into this contest with the better psychological frame.
They have a defence that has been fine, with Gift Bello its unsung Warrior, they are vulnerable down the left flank, their midfield has improved since Magorimbo was moved into that area, Devon Chafa has probably been outstanding and Washington Pakamisa has scored lots of goals.
It’s too close to call and the first goal, that is if we get a goal at all, will be key but if Dynamos score first, hopefully it won’t be “here we go again” in the CAPS squad and they lose all their focus and the confidence is blown out of the window.
If CAPS United score first, maybe we could see a real contest because, for the first time in some years, the chasing will have to be done by the Glamour Boys and we haven’t seen them being tested in that area for some time now in the Harare Derby.
Will it be a classic?
Hopefully but the Harare Derby drains too much from the players, it restricts them from expressing themselves and turns them into robots who are so afraid of making mistakes and that is why it rarely rises to expectations.
Who Will Win The Champions League?
I’m not sure, really, but this looks too close to make a call and it’s something we have never seen before — an all-German Champions League Final.
But I can predict, with authority, that the next Champions League winners will come from England. Why? Because the country that hosts the Champs League final produces the winner the following season.
2010 — Barcelona win after Madrid had hosted the final in 2009; 2011 — Inter Milan win after Rome had hosted the final in 2010; 2012 — Chelsea win after London hosted in 2011; 2013 — a Germany club wins after Munich hosted in 2012). 2014 — Manchester United wins after Wembley hosted in 2013.
To God Be The Glory!
Come on United!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Chitaritoooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
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