We’re not in crisis: DeMbare

Castle Lager Premiership title while aiming for a good outing in the Champions League this year.
The club’s new secretary-general Raymond Kazembe claimed that DeMbare are focused on the new season following an executive meeting held yesterday to discuss their pre-season preparations.
While admitting to adversities facing the club, Kazembe said “the situation at Dynamos should not be blown out of proportion” as the executive was working hard to address the challenges.
“We have had our fair share of challenges just like any club in the Premiership but I don’t think they are as serious as it sounds in the public domain,” Kazembe said.
“It now appears as if there is a crisis as at Dynamos, of which that is not the correct picture. Maybe it’s because we are a big club that always attracts media attention but the truth of the matter is that the situation is manageable and I believe we should be fine in a few weeks time.
“Funding is a big challenge during the off-season because there are no other avenues for revenue except sponsorship but we have managed to pay our players part of what was owed to them and we are working flat out to secure more funding,” said Kazembe.
DeMbare were, last week, forced to cancel their trip to Zvishavane because of unavailability of funds. Last month the club twice missed golden opportunities to travel to South Africa and Botswana because of their predicament.
However, Kazembe said they will continue with their preparations using the available resources and revealed that Dynamos have confirmed two friendly games pencilled in for the weekend. They will host Black Mambas at Rufaro tomorrow and then travel to Zvishavane for a date against Luke Masomere’s Shabanie Mine at Maglas on Sunday. Coach Callisto Pasuwa and his men will sleep over in Zvishavane after the game and then return to Harare the following day.
“Funds permitting we would want to have the best preparation possible. This weekend we are playing Black Mambas and Shabanie Mine.
“These games are open to supporters and we are meeting Mambas to work on the logistics. The tickets for that game have been pegged at US$2 for the rest of the ground, US$5 for the VIP and US$10 for VVIP. Gates will open at 1:00pm and the reserve sides will play first. We are inviting the supporters to come and see their team in action.
“As I have said the team is preparing for the new season and I also want to put the record straight on the issue of the training ground. “We wouldn’t want to strain our relations with owners of Raylton over this matter because the team has been training there for long now.
“If there are any complaints that it is bumpy and if it is true that players are getting injured because of the state of the pitch, then that report has not been communicated to us. But we will look into it as an executive,” said Kazembe.
Kazembe said yesterday’s executive indaba had explored ways of improving DeMbare’s preparedness for a busy season in which they will also fight for honours in the Champions League.
“We sat down as an executive to see how we can improve things at the club and we would want to involve all the stakeholders from the supporters, sponsors and the administration side.
“I urge the supporters and everybody at Dynamos to work together for the betterment of our club. Just like any organisation we need unity of purpose to achieve our goals and create a good image for Dynamos.
“Obviously the objective for 2012 would be to defend our league title and go as far as we can in the Champions League. Planning ahead is crucial for that and that is why we had an executive meeting today ,” said Kazembe.