Vusumuzi Dube
Gerald Sibanda, [email protected]
ZIMBABWEAN born goalkeeper Arnold Chimombe’s Pilikwe United are one play-off win away from Promotion to Botswana’s Northern Region First Division.
They had initially finished as champions of Division Two Tswapong Regional Football Association, and gained automatic qualification for the play-offs to Division One football.
They will have to wait until this Sunday to know who their opponents will be, as teams from other regions are still playing.
They hail from Serowe, on the eastern part of Botswana and their opponents from the other region will come from the Northern Region.
Chimombe (20) has played eight games this season, and has managed to keep four clean sheets in his third season with the team.
Regarding what promotion would mean to him, Chimombe said that it would help him in terms of exposure.
“Of course, when I came here, I knew that at Division Two level it was difficult to be seen, but promotion to Division One will help me get the exposure I need to pursue my goals.”
He joined the Botswana club from former Highlanders and Railstars player, Collen Nyambiya’s Young Flying Side Soccer Academy (YFSSA) which is based in Bulawayo.
Chimombe spoke of how much playing for the academy helped him technically.
“At an academy like YFSSA, you don’t only learn things like discipline and many other basic things, you also learn football from a technical point of view. When I joined the academy, I was not very technically gifted in attributes like being able to play from the back and to be naturally calm when I have the ball on my feet. I also learnt how to handle myself and my body shape when in possession of the ball, hence the experiences I got from the academy are going to be helpful to me in the future.”
Before joining YFSSA, started his career at boyhood club Golden White (Old Magwegwe) at junior level, he went on to join Highlanders Juniors for a short spell before going to play for Bantu Rovers.
He played for Bantu up to local Division Two level before Joining Division One side, Zimbabwe Saints, where he went on to join YFSSA before going to Botswana.
The league in Botswana has attracted foreign players from other countries around the South African region, even at second tier level as teams like recently promoted side VTM Football club, managed to secure South African players Sifiso Myeni and Rooi Mahamutsa who have previously played for South African giants, Orlando Pirates.
If Chimombe manages at the First Division next season, he will join fellow countrymate, Nkosilomusa Khanye who plays for Young Stars Football Club.
Online Reporter