Title race will go to the wire: Sweswe

Senior Sports Reporter
WITH the Zifa Southern Region Division One Socccer League programme approaching the halfway mark, Tsholotsho FC coach Lizwe Sweswe believes the battle will go to the wire.Unlike in the past where after 10 rounds of matches the team at the top of the table would be enjoying a six-point lead, this season is proving to be exhilarating with the top five — Ntabazinduna, Tsholotsho, Technosphere, Plumtree Chiefs and ZPC Hwange — all in contention for the title.

Table toppers Ntabazinduna, coached by former Zimbabwe international Agent “Ajila” Sawu, suffered their second defeat of the season going down 1-2 away to Trumus in Victoria Falls allowing Tsholotsho who edged ZPC Hwange 1-0 to close the gap to four                         points.

Ntabazinduna have amassed 24 points from 12 matches while Tsholotsho, sitting on second position with 20 points out of 10 outings, are the only team still unbeaten.

Edmore Chirambadare got the solitary goal for Sweswe’s side.

“The boys deserve some praise for the way they have managed to hold on until this time. What we have to do is make sure that we don’t let the bubble burst and fight to pick up maximum points. We have won five games, played to five draws which is a sign that the league is very competitive and what we have to do is guard against complacency.

“We have braced for a tough and taxing season because I foresee the title race going to the wire and we need to continue working hard,” Sweswe said.

Some of the players that have been consistent performers for Tsholotsho are skipper William Steamer, midfielder Butholezwe “Ncu” Ncube and left back Nkosilathi Moyo.

Sweswe has managed to assemble what appears to be a strong side and it will not be a surprise if they take Premiership action to Tsholotsho.

Plumtree Chiefs, who had gone into the weekend sitting on position two, slipped to fourth after their 1-2 defeat to Technosphere who are now third.

Goals in each half by Vumani Sibanda and Remington Masuku were enough for the Hwange club to grab maximum points with Trevor Nkomo getting a consolation goal for Plumtree Chiefs.

Meanwhile, Old Nic Mine picked their second point of the season when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Elephant FC.

Results

Saturday: Tsholotsho 1-0 ZPC Hwange, Plumtree Chiefs 1-2 Technosphere, Old Nic Mine 1-1 Elephant FC, New West 1-1 Black Boots, Trumus 2-1 NTabazinduna