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end on Sunday when the Zimbabwe Under-23 football team bowed out of the qualifiers at the last hurdle after losing to South Africa.
Despite beating their opponents 1-0 in the second leg of the final qualifiers on Sunday a sombre atmosphere still engulfed Rufaro as the Young Warriors, who are touted as the ‘Golden Generation’ of Zimbabwean football, were beaten in the Battle of the Limpopo.
Archford Gutu’s 47th minute header was not enough to turn the tables on the visitors, who led 2-0 from the first leg in South Africa, two weeks ago.
It was a result that Friday Phiri and his Class of 2011 will live to regret, for all the hard work they had done from the beginning of the qualifiers back in January, when they beat Zambia and Botswana under difficult circumstances.
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Team manager Wellington Mpandare yesterday said it was disappointing the team choked at the big moment, and also argued that they had lost the plot in the first leg when they put up a terrible show in Johannesburg.
But with a good crowd behind them on Sunday, Zimbabwe just could not rise to the occasion and turn the tables.
Zimbabwe needed a win by a clear three-goal margin to pull through to the Maputo Games or a 2-0 victory to force a penalty shootout.
But they employed a cautious approach, instead of taking the game to the visitors, who were also content to defend.
Phiri had brought in FC Platinum forward Donald Ngoma to partner Simba Sithole upfront but the pair never got going as they were kept under tight guard by the South African defenders.
“We had a game plan to use the wings but the injury to Mathew Rusike changed everything.
‘He played very well on the left flank and we would have loved him to play longer but he could not carry on in pain.
“In fact we had wanted to substitute Joel (Ngodzo) but following Rusike’s injury that could not be done.
“We needed more crosses from the wings because South Africa were solid at the back and in midfield.
“That is why we wanted to use the wings and in the end we got our goal from a cross,” said Mpandare.
The Young Warriors made changes to their team, bringing in Kiglon’s Tinashe Masika in central defence, to cover for the absence of Monomotapa’s Knowledge Machona, who was injured in the first leg.
Ngoma, United States-based Ntokozo Tshuma and Masvingo United midfielder Hardlife Mavhundi also played while goal-scorer Gutu returned to the fold after serving a two-match suspension imposed by Caf.
Tshuma played a few minutes after he came on as substitute for Ngoma, who had toiled for 77 minutes without success.
Mavhundi replaced Rusike but could not do much to change the game as his partner Ngodzo also struggled to make an impact on the other wing.
Zimbabwe had progressed from the first round after beating Zambia 4-3 on aggregate courtesy of a 3-2 win away in Zambia and a 1-1 draw in the return leg at Rufaro.
The Young Warriors then turned on another superb show in Botswana when they held the Young Zebras to a 2-2 draw before turning up the heat at Rufaro to win 4-1 in the second leg and book a date against South
Africa following the 6-3 aggregate victory.
But for all the promise, excitement and hopes, the world crumbled around Friday Phiri and his men in the first leg.
“We had no excuses for the poor performance in the first leg because we had better preparations compared to the camps we had for the games against Zambia and Botswana.
“For the first time, we also had a great send-off from the (Zifa) president and unlike the previous trips made by road, we were flown to South Africa. There was no fatigue to talk about and everyone was excited after we were promised bonuses,” said Mpandare.
But the team performed dismally on the field and it was a sorry sight as the Young Warriors, who had earned a reputation and touched the hearts of soccer-loving Zimbabweans because of their fighting spirit at home and away, easily succumbed to a brace from Bongani Ndulula.
So terrible was the performance that they could have lost by a wider margin if it was not for the goalkeeper Ariel Sibanda who commanded his area well.
The Highlanders shot-stopper was the only player who appeared to have the resolve to keep the team in the campaign.
Midfielder Devon Chafa was given his marching orders in the same match for his barbaric tackle on a South African player, which rendered him ineligible for the return leg.
The South Africa Under-23 beat Malawi 4-1 in the All-Africa Games qualifiers and then dispatched Benin 5-2 to remain in contention for the Olympic Games.
“We had a game plan but it appeared the major problem was that the players, most of whom had gone for trials just before this game, sort of put themselves under unnecessary pressure as they tried too hard to impress.
“The match was watched by officials and scouts from various clubs, hence we were under pressure from the start. It also appeared like the players were also too excited by the bonuses that they had been promised,” said Mpandare.
Online Reporter