daniel chigunwe
Eddie Chikamhi-Senior Sports Reporter
CHICKEN Inn coach Joey Antipas says consistency is key in the fight for the championship as the Gamecocks welcome Castle Lager Premiership football giants Dynamos at Barbourfields this afternoon.
The modest Bulawayo side, who are chasing their second silverware, are looking to get their campaign back in the tracks after ceding ground in the championship race, led by defending champions FC Platinum.
Chicken Inn and Dynamos, who face off this afternoon, are also strongly in the mix. Antipas yesterday said the Gamecocks are still determined to fight all the way despite falling three points from log leaders FC Platinum, who host ZPC Kariba at Mandava this afternoon.
“If you want to win silverware in football you have to be consistent in picking up points,” said Antipas. “We have tried our best to maintain our focus despite the setbacks we have faced along the way. But FC Platinum have been going all out guns blazing.
“So we just need to make sure we don’t fall too far behind at this stage. In football you have to fight for the results and we will do just that.”
The Gamecocks, however, have suffered from inconsistency, just like Dynamos. This has given FC Platinum the control of the championship race.
Before Chicken Inn’s 3-1 win over Bulawayo Chiefs last week, they had lost two successive matches to FC Platinum and Tenax.
Dynamos, on the other hand, have not won a match in their last four outings, while FC Platinum had a seven-match winning streak, which only ended last week when they played a goalless draw against DeMbare.
Antipas yesterday said the Gamecocks were in a positive mood after returning to winning ways last week against Bulawayo Chiefs.
“It was a big boost because if you lose two or so matches in succession it easily becomes a habit, which could be difficult to break. So we had to stop that.
“Dynamos are always a big team, never mind that they are going through a lean spell. You cannot just go out there and face them without thorough preparation, just because they have not been winning.
“We also went through such a dark spell recently and we lost two games in succession, which we felt we shouldn’t have lost. But the good thing is we won the last one against Bulawayo Chiefs,” said Antipas.
Dynamos, however, have struggled against the Gamecocks in Bulawayo, where they won only once in the last decade.
In fact, Chicken Inn have dominated the matches between the two sides, if statistics are anything to go by. The Gamecocks have picked up seven victories from the 19 meetings between the two teams since 2011 while Dynamos have won five times.
Seven other meetings have ended in stalemate. Chicken Inn have beaten Dynamos four times in Bulawayo and lost only once in nine meetings.
“On paper, yes we have dominated games against Dynamos but I usually don’t bank on history. For me, every game is a new game and a new challenge,” said Antipas.
The Gamecocks were yesterday keeping their fingers crossed as their chief marksman Brian Muza and another forward Malvin Hwata were set to take a late fitness test after picking up knocks. Defender Nelson Ketala was ruled out because of an ankle injury.
But the situation is worse with Dynamos, who were forced to drop five key players from their plans ahead of the high stakes match. DeMbare, on 36 points, trail second-placed Chicken Inn by five points on the log standings, and log leaders FC Platinum by eight points. The Glamour Boys will be without the quartet of Brendon Mpofu, Shadreck Nyahwa, Ralph Kawondera and King Nadolo for the game against Chicken Inn.
The Glamour Boys also released teenage winger Bill Antonio to go to Belgium for a month-long trial stint earlier this week.
Antonio was invited by Belgian side KV Mechelen for a month-long assessment and his absence could hamper the Harare giants in their bid to resuscitate a faltering campaign.
Dynamos have not won a match in their last four outings and this has impacted negatively on their title aspirations. They have managed to collect a paltry five points from a possible 15 in their last five outings.
Dynamos have found the going tough against the teams at the top. They lost 1-0 to Chicken Inn in the reverse fixture at the National Sports Stadium.
However, coach Tonderai Ndiraya sounded confident of turning the tables at Barbourfields today, despite the rough time they experienced in the last month.
DeMbare have not scored in their last four games and they hope to deflect the mounting pressure by getting things right in Bulawayo.
“Like I said, it’s not going to be easy but we are in for a fight. We haven’t been doing quite well in the past games but I think we got a confidence booster when we recovered from the bad phase which we had been going through (following the draw with FC Platinum) and hopefully we can continue to get out of those difficult moments.
“So it’s a game we are looking forward to, especially after playing so well against FC Platinum. I hope we can take that form to Chicken Inn and hopefully this time we can score a goal, or goals, so that we increase our chances of winning the match,” said Ndiraya.
Log leaders FC Platinum are eager to consolidate their place at the top. Their coach Norman Mapeza, however, is cautious ahead of the clash with relegation-threatened ZPC Kariba at Mandava this afternoon.
“After coming from what I think was a positive result against Dynamos; I think we played well. Now we face ZPC Kariba. They are a very good team. They have been doing well of late. If you look at their away record, they have been collecting points away from home.
“So it’s not going to be an easy game for us. Like I said, all the games we are going to play in the second half of the season are massive and difficult games.
“So, like what I always say, what is important is to go out there with a positive mind. We picked a lot of positives against Dynamos but I think we lacked a little bit of creativity in the final third and we have been working on that,” said Mapeza
Fixtures
Today: Cranborne Bullets v Harare City (Vengere), FC Platinum v ZPC Kariba (Mandava), Chicken Inn v Dynamos (Barbourfields), Yadah v Ngezi Platinum Stars (NSS)
Tomorrow: Highlanders v Bulawayo City (Barbourfields), CAPS United v Manica Diamonds (NSS), Triangle v Black Rhinos (Gibbo), Tenax v Bulawayo Chiefs (Vengere)
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