Online Reporter
Eddie Chikamhi-Zimpapers Sports Hub
THE classy act from defending champions Scottland on Sunday when they beat Hardrock in the race for control of the Castle Lager Premiership race should have sent a clear message to their rivals about the intensity of the contests to be expected in the second round of the campaign.
Scottland resumed the second round in commanding fashion, opening a four-point lead at the summit. They have capitalised on the stuttering form of closest rivals CAPS United and Hardrock, both of whom appear to have lost momentum at a crucial stage of the race.
CAPS United, once early pacesetters, faltered again after being held to a goalless draw by PSL newcomers AGAMA on Sunday. The Green Machine’s struggles in front of goal continue to haunt them, with the team failing to score in four of their last five outings.
But the story is very different for Scottland.
The Mabvuku-based side has hit a rich vein of form after an indifferent start to the season, emerging as firm favourites to retain the title they won in their debut campaign. Their recent statistics underline their dominance, with five consecutive wins, six clean sheets, and 11 unanswered goals in their last five matches.
The impressive form of experienced players such as Knowledge Musona, Khama Billiat and captain Walter Musona has lifted the team to another level, sharply contrasting with the inconsistency of their rivals.
Scottland have collected the maximum 15 points from their last five matches. In comparison, CAPS United have managed just four points over the same period, while third-placed Hardrock have picked up nine.
Despite the strong run, coach Norman Mapeza, a seasoned campaigner with four league titles to his name, remains cautious and insists the race is far from over.
Apart from the Billiat-Musona effect, the Mabvuku side has performed all-round.
Scottland’s defensive strength in particular has been one of their biggest assets. They have conceded just six goals in 18 matches and remarkably kept 14 clean sheets.
The backline, anchored by Peter Muduhwa, Kelvin Moyo, Mahommad Issaka, Khwake Thwala and goalkeeper Nelson Chadya, has been a pillar of consistency.
“We just have to keep working hard,” Mapeza said.
“They’ve been working. Like I said, on Thursday (last week), there is an understanding between those guys in the back, including Chadya.
“We’re not forgetting our defensive midfielders. I think they’ve been very solid. So, if they keep on working hard and keep on talking to each other, we won’t have any challenges.
“But so far, so good. They’ve been working and they’ve given us a lot in terms of defending. And we just need to keep working,” said Mapeza.
Scottland now sit on 37 points, followed by CAPS United on 33, with Hardrock on 32 — although the latter still have a game in hand after their abandoned tie against Dynamos last month. At this stage, the big question is: who can stop Scottland?
The champions are doing everything expected of a team chasing — and defending — the title. They have already taken four points off Hardrock this season, following a goalless draw at Chahwanda in the first round and Sunday’s crucial victory at Rufaro.
Yet Hardrock coach Kelvin Kaindu is not throwing in the towel just yet. His side, also chasing a historic title in their debut season, remain in contention.
“There’s still a lot of games to be played,” Kaindu said after Sunday’s defeat to the Scotts.
“Of course, it has affected us in terms of the gap. We need to play two games to catch up. But there’s still a lot of games. We are not talking about three games to go where we say the league is about to end.
“There are still 16 games to be played. It’s quite a lot if we can be consistent. Scottland have shown that this is the time that they have been consistently picking up points.
“If you see how the league has been going, it was CAPS United at some moment. We came and took over; we had the momentum, and you saw Herentals also picking up that momentum.
“Now it’s Scottland; they have picked up that momentum. If they can be consistent, it would be better for them, but if you see the way the results are coming in this league, I think it’s quite unpredictable.
“You can get points wherever you go. For us to lose (to Scottland), maybe if we could have come out of the draw, it would have been better. But we also learn from the mistakes that we did and we focus on the game that is coming,” said Kaindu.
But the biggest losers in this race so far are CAPS United. The Green Machine at some point enjoyed a four-point cushion at the top, but their recent run, which has seen them winning only two of their last nine matches, has dealt a heavy blow to their campaign.
Worse, has been their inability to take chances, with only three goals (scored in one game against ZPC Kariba) to show from their last five outings.
Sections of Makepekepe supporters are now divided over coach Takesure Chiragwi’s tactics.
But the youthful gaffer has remained defiant of his team’s chances in this year’s title race, insisting the current phase will pass.
“It’s not about the form. It’s about how they perform,” he said.
“The only missing link is to get that ball behind the nets. So, when we are playing well, we are not worried because we know what is important is just to correct the missing link so that the collaboration of the good performance that we are doing comes in with maximum points or with a goal.
“So, I think so far so good. We are not even panicking because this is what we want and where we are, we are very comfortable. We know we are competing, and like I’ve said, there are some positives that we also need to take into consideration apart from scoring.
“I understand everyone wants the team to score and win, which is normal in football. But we were also playing with a team that also wanted to win the game, and they also defended well and denied us the goals. But at the end of the day let’s look at how we defended, how we also protected possession and how we controlled the game the whole 90 minutes.
“If we have to focus on the negatives, we are going to lose focus, and then we are also going to lose everything, and at the end of the day we will have to restart again. So, we just have to take the positives and start from there,” Chiragwi said.
CAPS United face Herentals in their next match at Rufaro this Saturday.
