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Eddie Chikamhi-Senior Sports Reporter
THE stakes are set to be higher in this year’s Presidential Independence Day Trophy which will see giants Dynamos and Highlanders rekindling their football rivalry at Barbourfields next Monday.
The country’s flagship football teams are set to clash for the third time in a row in the invitational tournament that is being organised by the Government as part of the country’s Independence Day celebrations on April 18.
It has emerged that their principal sponsors, Sakunda Holdings, are planning to chip in with an attractive package to spur the giants in the quest to hype up the competition and quality of play on the day.
Dynamos got US$20 000 for winning the trophy last year while Bosso took home US$15 000 for coming second best.
But that figure could multiply more than five-fold. The rumour mill had it that the energy giants have set aside US$200 000 for the final.
However, a source close to the organisation yesterday dismissed the figure but maintained that “something big is definitely coming up”.
Sakunda Holdings project co-ordinator, Nqobile Magwizi, yesterday said no details were available yet for the Presidential Independence Day Trophy.
“We have heard the rumour about the huge incentives but so far there is nothing to that effect. Right now we are seized as a corporate citizen to do the usual, in terms of Independence Day celebrations.
“If there is anything coming up (for the Presidential Independence Day Trophy), we will make an official announcement,” said Magwizi.
Dynamos look to defend the silverware in this year’s final set for Barbourfields for the first time. The high profile football match is billed to put the icing on the cake as the whole nation comes together to commemorate 42 years of Independence and national sovereignty in Bulawayo.
President Mnangagwa is expected to grace the football match as guest of honour and will hand over the Presidential Independence Day Trophy to the winners.
Last week, Sakunda Holdings sought to jazz up the final by dangling individual winning bonuses of US$200 for each player if they had won their weekend games.
Magwizi explained then that the move by Sakunda Holdings was motivated by the need to warm up the players ahead of their bumper Presidential Independence Trophy contest.
However, players from both teams missed out on the extra bonuses after both Dynamos and Highlanders failed to win their Castle Lager Premiership matches at the weekend.
Dynamos played a goalless stalemate against bogey side Ngezi Platinum Stars at Baobab on Saturday and Bosso had to dig themselves out from a pit of shame with a come-from-behind 2-2 draw against Cranborne Bullets at Barbourfields on Sunday.
However, Dynamos coach, Tonderai Ndiraya, sounded enthusiastic ahead of the Uhuru Cup final after leading his side on a run of six matches unbeaten and also taking control of the championship race for the first time this year following the draw at Ngezi Platinum Stars.
“Now we have gone six games unbeaten and we want to maintain that. We are looking forward to the next game. We would want to keep collecting points.
“If you can collect a point away from home, especially in the first half of the season, it’s good for the team. Now we are on 23 points, we look ahead to next week.
“We are now focusing on the Independence Cup which is coming up next weekend… I like the way we are exerting ourselves, especially in the matches that we have played so far.
“That has really put us in a very good standing and I am very proud of the team and the supporters who are really getting behind us and pushing the boys in each and every game,” said Ndiraya.
Dynamos and Highlanders, as the two biggest and widely supported teams in the country, have featured in the previous two finals of the invitational tournament.
DeMbare won the trophy last year when football returned for the first time following a one-year hiatus because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
They beat Highlanders 2-0 at the National Sports Stadium, with Trevor Mavhunga scoring the opener before Peter Muduhwa’s second half own-goal.
The tournament was not played in 2020 because of the pandemic. Highlanders had won it when it was last played in 2019 after beating Dynamos 2-0, thanks to second-half goals from Bhukhosi Sibanda and Tinashe Makanda.
Dynamos are the most successful club in the Uhuru Cup, having won 10 titles since Independence and playing in seven other finals.
Bosso have seven Uhuru titles to their name and are the second most successful team.
The Government announced that the cup final will take place in Bulawayo, where the national Independence Day celebrations will be held for the first time, in line with the Second Republic’s drive towards the promotion of national unity, devolution and decentralisation.
This year’s event will be held under the theme “Zim@ 42 – Leaving no one and no place behind”. The 2022 Children’s Party and 42nd Anniversary Independence Day Celebrations will be held in strict observance of all Covid-19 protocols in the efforts to avoid the spread of the respiratory disease.
There will be a massive Covid-19 testing exercise in Bulawayo during the Independence Day celebrations. Only those who are tested and are negative will be allowed to attend the celebrations.
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