Onward Gangata [email protected]
THE curtain comes down today on the Zifa Central Region Soccer League season when the inaugural Dream Inn-GMI Super 8 Challenge Cup final is staged at Chahwanda.
The tournament provides a fitting finale to what has been a splendid season for the Central Region, which culminated in Blanket Mine winning the championship and securing promotion to the Premier Soccer League.
For the other teams, however, the competition offers an opportunity to salvage something from the season after missing out on the league title.
Grain Tigers and Super Strikers will face off in the final, with both sides hoping to make history by becoming the inaugural winners of the competition.
“We are very excited about the tournament and it’s an inaugural tournament where we have partnered with GMI and Dream Inn. We are looking forward to continuing with this partnership and possibly having it next year,” said Central Region chairperson Patrick Hill.
He challenged the two finalists to bring their best performances to the occasion.
“I hope the two teams in the final will field their strongest sides so that they have something to fight for since the championship went to Blanket Mine,” he added.
Going into the final, Grain Tigers appear to have the upper hand, having finished the campaign strongly.
The Kwekwe-based side finished fifth in the league and will be confident of carrying that momentum into the final as they seek to lift the trophy.
They will also draw inspiration from former Premiership stars Newman Sianchali and former Whawha goalkeeper Allan Masaya, whose experience could prove valuable in the decisive encounter.
Super Strikers, on the other hand, will be keen to extend Gwanda-based sides’ dominance in the league this season.
With Blanket Mine already having secured the championship, Super Strikers will be determined to ensure that Gwanda’s football success story continues by bringing another trophy to the mining town.
