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Ellina Mhlanga
Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWE’S Under-20 men’s handball team captain Shown Thomas says they will have to rise above their challenges at the International Handball Federation Trophy Continental Phase tournament in Ethiopia.
The competition comes to life on Saturday and runs until next week Wednesday in Addis Ababa.
Zimbabwe regrouped on Sunday in Harare for their last camp ahead of their departure on Friday.
Yesterday marked their second day of training at Chitungwiza Aquatic Complex.
Thomas feels more time together as a team would have put them in a better position to compete against some of the top junior teams on the continent.
“We are a little bit behind because we had a long break, almost a month and half and we were not training as a team. We had individual training programmes.
“Looking at the level of competition we are going to face and our preparations, it’s going to be tough. We were expecting to get more time training as a team but things did not go as we expected.
“But we are doing everything we can, putting in the effort to make sure that we perform better.
“But basically, we are left with a day for training, Thursday we will be preparing for travelling, so we don’t have much time. But we will keep on working hard,” said Thomas.
The tournament will see Under-20 and Under-18 teams from different African countries competing in their respective age groups.
Zimbabwe are up against Reunion, Rwanda, Guinea and Congo in the Under-20 category.
The teams qualified for the continental event during their respective zonal competitions held this year.
Zimbabwe earned their ticket in the Under-20 after winning the Zone VI tournament in May.
“We are all excited especially for our first game. We just have to push and see if we can achieve something in our first match. We are going to do our best.
“It’s very important to get this kind of exposure and experience playing at this level, tough games and stiff competition, it helps with development.
“If funds were available, we would have loved to play countries such as Zambia and Mozambique to get exposure and experience. It helps in game situations because you are used to playing different players and in different situations.
“If we can win some games, it would be an improvement from the last time,” said Thomas.
Online Reporter