Foreign-based stars join Cheetahs camp

have reached the home stretch with most foreign-based players joining camp.
The camp is expected to run till the end of the week with the Cheetahs expected to depart for the Asian tournament at the weekend where they will camp for a further three days before the tournament kicks-off.
Having gone into camp on Monday the Cheetahs started with a fitness and conditioning test with manager Bruce Hobson.
“The team had a very good start to the camp and we started with a conditioning test and I was generally pleased with the way the boys responded to the test.
“This morning we had fitness test on the teams as well and the results were equally good,” said the former Zimbabwe Rugby Union president.
The beginning of the week long camp also marked the return of District Dragons coach Grant Mitchell who missed the Dubai and South Africa back-to-back tournaments at the end of last year.
Foreign based players who were part of the camp yesterday included Germany-based Manasa Sita and England-based Shingi Chiwanga who last featured during last year’s Hong Kong tournament.
From South Africa the Cheetahs were boosted by the presence of Gardner Nechironga, Wes Mbanje, Gerald Sibanda, Tangai Nemadire and promising winger Tafadzwa Chitokwindo.
Chitokwindo made his debut for the Cheetahs last year at the beginning of the Sevens Series after he graduated from the Zimbabwe Under-21 side but he is now based at South Africa’s Rhodes University.
However, playmaker Daniel Hondo will not be part of the squad as he has family commitments while Josh Rowe has been sidelined for the tour owing to a broken collarbone.
“It is unfortunate we will not have the services of Danny (Hondo) during the tournament because he has family commitments while Josh Rowe cannot be part of the squad as he has a shoulder injury and is currently in Cape Town.
“But we have a number of foreign based players in the side and most of them were part of the team that went to Dubai and George last year.”
Most of the players in the squad got a good preparation for the Hong Kong tournament in the three leg Spar Sevens Summer Series tournament that was held at Old Georgians over the last three weekends.
The first leg of the series was washed off and the onus was upon hosts Old Georgians (formerly District Dragons) as they won the remaining two tournaments.
Most of the Cheetahs players reign from Old Georgians and these include captain Jacques Leitao, Fortune Chipendo, Mitchell, Justin Coles and Njabulo Ndlovu.
“It is good that we had that tournament as it served a number of purposes on the local rugby calendar because it prepare the local league players for the domestic season.
“And there was a also a national cause in it because those players that will go to Hong Kong were able to get game time before their departure, noting areas that need possible improvements.
“And for the fact that we need to see the game growing in Zimbabwe the Spar tournament enabled us to identify some players who we see as potential Cheetahs.
“We will work closely with these players first getting them into the academy and if they do well they will have a chance of progressing to the Goshawks” said Hobson.
Some of the players that came through the same system include Nemadire, Chitokwindo, Sibanda and Ndlovu and are now part of the core Cheetahs squad.
“We can not just take them at one go but will have to monitor them and as they progress expose them to the necessary level of the game.
“And as for the rest of this week we will prepare for the Hong Kong tournament and it is these preparations that will culminate in our game plan and different sets of play.
“We are also going to have some social programmes in some schools like we did before we left for Dubai because we have to be responsible and give back to the communities we come from,” said Hobson.
Cheetahs Squad
Fortune Chipendo, Jacques Leitao (captain), Njabulo Ndlovu, Grant Mitchell, Manasa Sita, Justine Coles, Graham Kaulback, Tangai Nemadire, Shingi Chiwanga, Gerald Sibanda, Wes Mbanje, Tafadzwa Chitokwindo, Gardner Nechironga.