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Augustine Hwata Sports Reporter
THE Zimbabwe Rugby Union was yesterday taken to task by parliamentarians over a number of issues ranging from alleged racism in the sport to the appointment of Liam Middleton as the national director of coaching.The ZRU appeared before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Education, Sport, Art and Culture where their leadership was forced to defend allegations of racism whose dark cloud has hung over the sport in the past week.
ZRU president John Falkenberg led his team that had vice president Nyararai Sibanda and general manager Sifiso Made. Losson Mtongwizo, the former Sables team manager who retired from all forms of rugby this week under a cloud, former player Taya Chakarisa and ex-Sables committee chairman Dumi Sibanda also made some oral presentations.
Former ZRU board member Gerald Maguranyanga, Sables assistant coach Cyprian Mandenge and rugby legend Zivanai Dzinomurumbi attended the tension-filled hearing.
While the summoning of ZRU to present their evidence before the MPs was on schedule, their appearance apparently coincided with the recent allegations of racism in the sport that were brought to the fore by Mtongwizo last week.
Chairman of Parliamentary portfolio committee, Temba Mliswa, a former rugby coach, forced Falkenberg to go on the defence when he queried if due process was followed in the appointment of Middleton, Made and ZRU vice-president Coleen de Jonge and marketing consultant David Crouch.
“Is Zimbabwe rugby 15 men or seven men?” Mliswa posed a question to Falkenbberg who responded that the bigger version was more popular.
“You are giving me a CV that he (Middleton) is from sevens rugby for the national sides and he has great results. But has he (got) any results in terms of 15-man rugby?,” Mliswa queried.
Falkenberg said they felt Middleton was the best man for the job, after looking at the few applicants, and given that other seasoned coaches like Godwin Murambiwa turned down the offer.
“He coached in Britain and I believe that when he coached at Bristol he must have been a good coach. I never heard that he was fired from the post,” Falkenberg said.
But Mliswa was still not convinced.
“So, you do not even know his CV, in terms of 15s, but you make him the director of rugby in a 15s nation yet his expertise is in sevens rugby,” said Mliswa.
“I do not understand this, we have a sevens coach, who has great results at sevens, and we are a 15-man rugby country and we appoint him to be a 15-man coach.
“He has no results in Zimbabwe (in 15s) and one of the policies in this country is to empower locals,” said Mliswa.
Falkenberg said there was no racism in Zimbabwe rugby but there were different view points. Sables legend and current Matabeleland coach Dzinomurumbi felt that rugby in Zimbabwe was on the rise three years ago.
Dzinomurumbi said there was a worrying trend in the sport now where black players were once again the minority.
Online Reporter