Online Reporter
Veronica Gwaze
Zimpapers Sports Hub
THE night sparkled in Harare. This was at the 2022 Premier Soccer League Soccer Stars Awards.
The air buzzed with energy, the red carpet alive with the game’s brightest names.
Among them was 23-year-old Ngezi Platinum Stars forward Delic Murimba, one of the season’s revelations. He had just finished with 13 goals, third in the Golden Boot race behind William Manondo and Walter Musona.
In Mhondoro-Ngezi, his name carried weight. Many still talked about the day he tore apart WhaWha, scoring four goals in one match. With form like that, Murimba was not just a finalist; he was tipped as the rising star to watch in 2023. But within six months, the cheers went quiet — Murimba’s season collapsed with the snap of a ligament. A torn ACL, the sort of injury that swallows careers, forced him off the pitch indefinitely.
“The moment I got injured, I did not take it seriously. I thought it was one of those usual minor injuries in the game,” he said.
The reality was brutal. Doctors told him he would be out for at least 18 months.
Worse for him, they warned there was no guarantee he would ever play again.
“I recall breaking down when they delivered the news. I could see my world crumbling down as I watched helplessly,” Murimba said.
“In that moment, I thought this was the end of my football journey and pretty much my life.”
For the next year and a half, the forward would be in and out of operating rooms. The period would also be marked by endless rehab and long spells of isolation. Fear set in, followed by anxiety. He avoided teammates, stayed away from stadiums and shut out even childhood friends.
“Watching them play would only bring heartbreak and remind me of the life I now feared I would never reclaim,” he said.
“I self-isolated. I wasn’t ready for questions that reminded me of what I now pictured as my past.”
Ngezi stood by him, paying his medical bills and guaranteeing his salary, but Murimba wrestled with the fear of having no life beyond football.
“My life revolves around football. At that stage, I asked myself what I’d do for a living if I stopped playing the game,” he said.
It took months of slow, painful progress before he could run again.
Early this year, he returned to light training, then rejoined the squad in April.
By August, he had fought his way back onto the pitch, scoring once in three games, including a match winner in a 3-2 thriller against Yadah.
“I feel indebted to the club for their support and doing everything recommended to have me bounce back,” he said.
“Had it not been for Ngezi, I wouldn’t be here. Few local clubs would have been willing to cover medical expenses and rehab for a player doctors had ruled out for close to two years.”
Murimba now pushes harder in training, determined to repay his club and regain the form that once made him one of the country’s brightest forwards.
His dreams even go beyond Zimbabwe. After an unsuccessful trial with Stellenbosch in 2019, he still hopes for a second chance outside the country.
For now, though, the focus is clear: To prove that the boy who once lit up Baobab with four goals in one game can climb all the way back.
From Hwange’s dusty Division One fields to Triangle and then Ngezi, football has always been home for Murimba. After 18 months in the shadows, he is fighting to make sure it stays that way.
