Vusumuzi DubeSimba Jemwa, Sports Reporter
AS the football tournament marks 65 years of its existence, you might never have heard of the Townshend and Butcher Trophy, but chances are you will be familiar with its products.
Perhaps you are a Zimbabwe Saints fan who is thrilled at the sight of Gibson Homela barrelling towards an opposition centre-back. Or perhaps you are a Highlanders fan who has punched the air in delight after watching Barry Daka crisply strike a shot past a stricken goalkeeper.
Even if you support none of those clubs, if you have spent any time watching Zimbabwean football over the last 65 years, you will have watched a player who was given a leg up by the Bulawayo Amateur Football Association (BAFA) through the Townshend and Butcher Trophy.
Playing in the amateur ranks for clubs with a religious following allowed players to grow as footballers and personalities. This prepared them for life for the big stage which by then was limited to tournaments such as the Osborne Trophy and others later introduced like the Townshend and Butcher Trophy.
As literary the “head of youth recruitment” in Bulawayo from 1957, Bafa and the Townshend and Butcher Trophy are partly responsible for having launched the careers of a galaxy of talent that includes Homela, Daka, Gibson Makanda, Jerry Vera, Chester Makanda, ABC Rusike, Edward Dlamini, the late Mackenzie Sibanda, Billy Sibanda, Lawrence Phiri and Edward Dzowa (to name but 11). Few other youth recruiters in the modern game can boast such a glittering legacy.
“I just enjoyed the talent that clubs in Bafa have been able to recruit over the years, going out and finding talented players,” Peter Leondios, the sponsor of Townshend and Butcher Trophy told Sunday Life.
“I want to be humble about it, but it’s true, we had some success.”
Homela and Daka lead a cast that also includes John Walker, Douglas Mutemi, Kainoti Luphahla, Peter Nkomo, Dumisani Ndlovu, and Joseph Dube that have played in the tournament.
“We’re proud to note that people like Homela 50 years down the line are still active in the game. There are other legends too like William Sibanda, Mackenzie Sibanda, ABC Rusike, Edward Dzowa, they’ve become part of the game and tournament’s folklore.
Bafa’s work, and that of its clubs, helped to turn Bulawayo’s youth football into one of the most prolific talent-production lines in Zimbabwean football. Bafa and the Townshend and Butcher Trophy have produced countless players who played the Super League, the Premier Soccer League predecessor. It is an especially fitting achievement for a tournament that has been involved in local football since 1957.
Back in 1957 the first edition’s participants included Matabeleland Highlanders, Mashonaland Defender, United Africa, Northern Rhodesia, Mutambara, Manicaland, Rhodesia Railways and the following year was won by in 1958, was won by Matabeleland Highlanders, the modern-day giants, Highlanders.
The annual football extravaganza gave budding stars a platform to gain game time for later development at bigger clubs who included Bulawayo Rovers, Salisbury Callies, City Pirates, Tornados, Chibuku Shumba, Dynamos, Mashonaland United, City Pirates, Matabeleland Highlanders, Eastern Brothers, Mhangura, Hwange, Gweru United, Gaza United, Mutambara Brothers and Black Aces.
“The Townshend and Butcher Trophy has a culture of faith in young players from Bulawayo and beyond,” Charles Chunda, the current Bafa chairman, said.
“It’s part of the tournament’s DNA. But although traditionally this tournament was for Bafa teams only, we have since included clubs from area zones to spread its influence in development of football. We want other clubs to see the value of affiliating with Zifa through Bafa and area zones.”
The spur for the tournament’s emergence as a force in the field of football development was local businessman Townshend’s arrival as a sponsor in 1957. And for the past 36 years, the Leondios family has been part of the Bulawayo football landscape, an all-weather benefactor whose only question to football has always been “how much is needed” or “ how can I help”.
And the patriarch of the family, Panayiotis (Peter) declares unapologetically: “As long as I am alive, my family and I will continue to support football.”
Through their sports apparel and equipment business, Townshend and Butcher which Peter bought from Wally Townshend in 1986, the Leondios family has been at the forefront of amateur football development for more than half a century. —@RealSimbaJemwa
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