Online Reporter
Tinashe Kusema
Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIMBABWE A skipper Hilton Mudariki has said the Sables’ developmental side is still a work in progress but expressed satisfaction with what he has seen so far.
The team is back home after their tour of South Africa where they played two matches against a Northern Region invitational team and Louis Trichardt Club.
They won both their matches, beating the Northern Region Invitational team 55-0 and Louis Trichardt 40-20.
While they got big margin victories in both matches, the games offered the Zimbabwe developmental team unique challenges with the game against the Northern Region played under wet conditions while they were pushed to their limit against Louis Trichardt.
It was also the team’s first competitive outing since their Africa Cup and 2027 World Cup qualification in Uganda last year and, more importantly, a chance to create a pathway for Sables selection for the local-based players.
And, for the most part, the tour ticked a lot of boxes.
“Yeah, it was good to get back out there on the field and it was also nice to play against different opposition,” said Mudariki.
“This was an opportunity for us to see where we really are and identify areas that we need to work on.
“I am very happy with the wins, both of them, as we played under difficult conditions in the first match and then we got pushed and had to grind out a result in the second match,” he said.
Mudariki has been entrusted with overseeing the local players’ progress, alongside his deputies Kudzi Mashawi and Aiden Burnett, and has given them glowing reviews.
In particular, the duo of Polite Phiri and Tatenda Kamubvumbi had a great outing, winning Player of the Match gongs in the games against the Northern Region Invitational and Louis Trichardt Club, respectively.
“Winning both our matches was indeed a good thing as one always wants to keep the momentum going,” he said.
“However, the most important things were the key takeaways in terms of our progress.
“These are essentially things that we need to work on and the things that we did right.
“There were some great performances, particularly from the younger players with Tatenda Kamubvumbi and Polite Phiri standing out.
“Phiri was all over the show and ran himself rugged during the first game, winning the Player of the Match award in the process.
“Kamubvumbi also had a good game in the second match.
“And, I was very impressed by the two during the tour,” he said.
As it pertains to the work-ons, Mudariki expressed reservations about the team’s error count and urged his charges to strive a little more for perfection.
“There are a couple of things that we still need to work on, with the top being the skills application and the need to keep that error count low,” said the skipper.
The team has a short turnover before they start preparing for the next assignment, hosting Zambia and Botswana next month. They will then turn their attention to the returning Victoria Cup.
While the actual dates of the Rugby Africa Victoria Cup are yet to be finalised, Zimbabwe are expected to host Uganda, Kenya and Namibia, the participants of the tournament, during the month of May.
They will then wrap up their preparations with a match against South Africa A, formerly South Africa’s Emerging side, which will act as a curtain raiser to the clash between the Springboks and the Barbarians at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on June 20.
