Stix focuses on rebuilding

Curtworth Masango

BLACK Rhinos coach, Stanford ‘Stix’ Mutizwa, said he is now focusing on rebuilding his team after 13 players left the army side.

Some of the players who were instrumental in their campaign last season such as former captain Farai Banda, Keith Madera, Gareth Madhake, Ashwald Phiri and Eli Illunga have all left.

Mutizwa said they are going to build their team around veteran Allan Gahadzikwa.

“We are building a team around Allan Gahadzikwa. He is very crucial to the team in terms of his experience. He will be a great help to new players. We have arranged a number of friendly games to assess new players,” said Mutizwa.

“Rebuilding is an uphill task, and the number we lost is too big. Though we are hoping to get some seasoned players from the PSL, we have somewhere to start. We hope those who have returned from military training will also be a good addition.

“Remember we had a number of our young players who went for military training. We got other players from our sister clubs such as Chapungu and Tongogara, and we are still assessing them.”

He said he is still focusing on conditioning his players physically before he implements a playing philosophy. Rhinos left for Gweru on Saturday for pre-season camp.

“During the preparation period, a lot happens in terms of physique. A lot of players don’t want to run and work out. Once we are through with this physical preparation, then we will be able to see how they are feeling about being at the club.

“Once we are through with physical endurance, then we can look at our philosophy on how we want to play.”