Sports Correspondent
VETERAN hockey official Virginia “Ginny” Ross will contest for the vice presidency of the Africa Hockey Federation (AfHF) in elections set for South Africa next month. Ross will be up against South Africa’s Sheila Brown and AfHF secretary-general Nii Quaye-Kumah from Ghana at the federation’s congress. Ross is presently an AfHF executive board member.

An elated Ross said she was honoured to be nominated for the position.

“It’s awesome to be nominated as one of the three candidates as it shows that as a country we’re doing something right in terms of the sport.

“However, it’s just a nomination. If I win, I’ll continue my job as an executive member, but if I lose that would be it,” said Ross.

Two other HAZ officials, vice-president Humphrey Chigwedere and Sarah Bennett, would be vying to be committee members.

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
THE annual Zimbabwe National Army Charities’ golf tournament tees off at Harry Allen Golf Club in Bulawayo this morning with more than 100 golfers expected to take to the fairways. The Baker’s Inn sponsored event started in the city in 2012 and ZNA Commander Lt General Phillip Valerio Sibanda tees off at 6AM to mark the official start of the tournament.

The event is expected to raise at least $3,000 to be channelled towards the army’s five charities.

“More than 100 golfers will tee off tomorrow just after the ceremonial gesture by the commander,” said Alphios Makotore, the ZNA director of public relations. The prize giving ceremony will be held at the same venue in the evening.

The golf tournament was preceded by a fundraising dinner at a local hotel last night that saw various pledges being made towards the fund.

The five ZNA charities are Tsanga Lodge Convalescent Centre in Nyanga for the rehabilitation of injured soldiers; the Benevolence Fund for the welfare of troops on internal, external and international operations; ZNA Schools Welfare Trust, which has a total of 12 primary and five secondary schools as well as the Widows and Orphans Fund that takes care of widows of soldiers before they receive terminal benefits.

Besides the golf tournament, the army also runs a football tournament as well as a horse racing event as part of its fundraising activities.

HIGHLANDERS finally announced the sacking of Bongani Mafu as coach, four days after defeat by Chicken Inn that saw the Bulawayo giants drop into the Premier Soccer League’s bottom half to 10th on the 16-team table. Mafu’s stormy nine-month reign was ended at a Press conference that left fans with more questions than answers. He had faced renewed chants for his dismissal from supporters at Barbourfields Stadium and the Highlanders’ executive led by chairman Peter Dube made its move amid growing fears that the club could be relegated.

The truth is that under Mafu, Bosso had been in freefall for months and the executive’s hand was forced by the fans’ growing restlessness.

Although the executive was jolted to its senses and cut ties with the underperforming Mafu, his replacements caused even more disenchantment, with fans taking to social media networks to vent their frustrations against the club’s leadership.

They derided the appointment of Cosmas Zulu to lead the technical staff comprising Amin Soma-Phiri and Melusi Mabaleka Sibanda saying it represented a backward step. The fans just fell short of calling for the Highlanders’ executive to go.

Which then begs the question who really is to blame for Highlanders’ woes? Bosso fans want their team to dominate the domestic scene season after season, but that hasn’t happened for the past nine years. Who then must shoulder the blame?

That is probably where the problem lies as one never gets a straight answer. People resort to the blame game. The executive blames the coaches, and the coaches blame the management for lack of resources or the players for sabotage or failing to understand their philosophy.

But why is it that only the coach is blamed for poor performances? He is not on the pitch trying to score the goals. Surely the players are the people who hold ultimate responsibility for the success or otherwise of the team.

Yes, coaches have to take responsibility when their team lose but what about the club administrators? What if they don’t pay players on time?

It’s hard to get positive results if conditions don’t favour those charged with getting results. Management sometimes will not look at their mistakes and correct them but always blame the coach. Maybe executive committee members should also learn to leave the clubs they claim to love and allow others to bring in fresh ideas.

It rarely happens that management blame themselves. They conveniently point a blaming finger to those below them. But how can fans force club management to account for some disastrous decisions they make on their behalf? The only platform management gets to account is at the annual general meeting (AGM).

So for fans to get their way, they have to mobilise themselves and ensure they are in good standing so that when an AGM is called, they attend in numbers and vote in the people they believe can do a good job at their favourite clubs, instead of always whining outside the system.

Most fans have turned to social media to call for Bosso chairman Dube’s head, but sadly that’s the wrong platform. If Bosso fans could be as active within the club structures as they have been on social media this week, the club would not be in the situation it finds itself in right now.

It’s not good enough to just moan about what Dube is doing or not doing on the wrong platform. The fans must just become fully paid up club members in good standing to ensure that their voice is never ignored since they would a big say at AGMs.

Right now it’s Dube who has the mandate to run the club having been elected unchallenged and he is doing what he believes is for the good of the club. If fans feel he has lost it, they have to vote him out at the next AGM.

The only problem is that those voicing the strongest opinions are probably not Bosso members so their complaints will simply remain inconvenient noise.

Here’s some feedback by former Warriors’ captain Ephraim Chawanda on last week’s instalment about players preparing for their future.

Several events have occurred, raising spectra of emotions from the football fraternity. The core of these reactions being the welfare of football players after their “use by” date. My opinion is two fold. What did the ex-player himself prepare for his retirement? What is the ex-player doing personally for his upkeep?

Yes, the sore fact is that some of us never bothered to entertain such thoughts during our playing days because then, you are made to feel immortal. Now the fact that football on its own is a fully-fledged industry, a rich one for that matter, seems to elude a lot of us in Zimbabwe.

Ex-footballers because of ignorance believe that all of us must be coaches or managers, which of course will keep us in the public eye, whose attention we want to hold onto for eternity.

Those who have been appointed into management positions from other sections of football (non-players), use the popularity of the ex-players to keep their positions by ensuring the ex-players are excluded from administrative positions but are directed to the normally volatile coaching positions.

They manipulate the system so much that we fear or feel inadequate to challenge for nominations to those positions.

The challenge which faces us now as ex-footballers is how do we win back our stake in the football industry by working together strategically to ready ourselves for an effective takeover?

We need to educate the younger and upcoming generation about the pitfalls of the industry. For now, our silence has been deafening.

Feedback: dingi.ntuli@chronicle.co.zw

Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
A record 1,300 players are expected to take part in this year’s edition of the Delta Beverages Carling Black Label Pool tournament with provincial finals starting today and running for the next two months. About 1,000 players competed in the men’s and women’s categories won by Obert Nyarumwe and Someya Mulauzi in last year’s edition.

Winners from the provincial finals qualify for the national finals set for Bulawayo on November 7. Mashonaland Central and Mashonald East provinces kick off the two-month long qualifiers today with competitions in Bindura and Marondera respectively. Delta Beverages marketing manager Patricia Murambinda said for one to qualify as a participant, they should buy five units of Carling Black Label from either the 375ml pack, 750ml pack, 330ml or 440ml cans and attach five crowns or five red ring pulls for an entry form.

“It’s a win-win game for the Carling Black Label drinkers as they enjoy both big value for their money and entertainment,” said Murambinda. She said bankrolling the 10th edition of this tournament showed her company’s commitment to improving pool in the country. “Delta Beverages, through its Carling Black Label brand has contributed immensely to the development of pool in Zimbabwe. The marriage between the two partners dates back 10 years and each year has seen the tournament getting better organised and growing from strength to strength. We’ve no doubt that local talent is being afforded the chance to realise the dreams of being masters of the game,” she said.

Provincial Knockouts

Date Zone

Saturday, September 05, 2015 Bindura

Sunday, September 06, 2015 Bindura

Saturday, September 05, 2015 Marondera

Sunday, September 06, 2015 Marondera

Saturday, September 12, 2015 Chitungwiza

Sunday, September 13, 2015 Chitungwiza

Saturday, September 12, 2015 Harare

Sunday, September 13, 2015 Harare

Saturday, September 19, 2015 Chinhoyi

Sunday, September 20, 2015 Chinhoyi

Saturday, September 26, 2015 Midlands

Sunday, September 27, 2015 Midlands

Saturday, September 26, 2015 Mutare

Sunday, September 27, 2015 Mutare

Saturday, October 17, 2015 Masvingo

Sunday, October 18, 2015 Masvingo

Saturday, October 24, 2015 Hwange

Sunday, October 25, 2015 Hwange

Saturday, October 24, 2015 Bulawayo

Sunday, October 25, 2015 Bulawayo

Saturday, October 24, 2015 Gwanda

Sunday, October 25, 2015 Gwanda

Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
HOW Mine FC’s management has expressed concerns about the team’s dip in form that has seen them being counted among some of the worst performing Castle Lager Premier Soccer League sides in the second half of the season. The gold miners, like their neighbours Highlanders, Chapungu and Buffaloes, have collected a five points from their last six matches.

How Mine, whose target is a top four finish, held a review meeting at their mining compound yesterday where the club’s leadership remained hopeful of a change in fortunes.

“We did well in the first 10 games going up to the halfway mark, but we seem to have had some challenges in the second half of the season. To be honest, three defeats, two draws and a single win is a bit worrisome and it’s up to the players and technical team to ensure that we start collecting positive results if we’re to achieve our top four target,” said How mine chairman Alpha Matumbura.

How Mine are sixth on the log table tied on 31 points with Harare City, who are also eyeing a top four finish. Coached by the self-proclaimed doctor of football Luke Masomere, How Mine should brace for tough encounters on the homestretch. Triangle United are fourth with 36 points and the miners are hoping that the Eastern Lowveld side continues to blow hot and cold to give them a chance to close in.

“We’re within our target and at this stage we need to try and collect maximum points and hope that the teams above us lose. Realistically if we slip and the teams close to us pick up points, then there’s a great danger of us further drifting from our intended goal. However, we still trust that our seasoned coach Masomere will soon find a winning formula,” said Matumbura.

Pressure has been mounting on Masomere, whose charges were fourth with 26 points on Week 15 and trailed defending champions Dynamos, who were a point ahead on third place.

DeMbare are now second with 39 points, eight points above How Mine. Matumbura said Masomere still had a year left on his contract adding that they believed injuries adversely affected their campaign. How Mine lost striker Charles Sibanda to injury after he broke his collarbone in a car accident. Limited Chikafa retraced his footsteps to ZPC Kariba and leftback James Chitereki pulled a muscle and has been ruled out for the rest of the season.

Nyasha Mukumbi has also been in and out due to injuries. However, the gold miners had good replacements in the form of strikers Mgcini Sibanda, Nefitary Ndale, Devon Chafa, Godfrey Nguwodzawo and Gilbert Banda, who surprisingly have spent most of their time on the terraces.

Even their two junior players Stephen Nyambabvu and Arnold Muganyi are yet to taste PSL action despite doing well at training sessions. How Mine’s next three encounters are against Tsholotsho, title contenders FC Platinum and Whawha.

Ndumiso Gumede

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
HIGHLANDERS have embarked on a witch hunt to flush out individuals the club blames for leaking vital confidential information to the media. The hunt for the mole was confirmed by the club’s chief executive officer Ndumiso Gumede at Bosso’s Press conference on Thursday afternoon where the official sacking of coach Bongani Mafu was announced.

Veteran Cosmas Zulu was named new technical advisor while former players Amin Soma-Phiri and Melusi Mabaleka Sibanda were unveiled as the head coach and assistant respectively. Gumede told journalists that the club was disturbed by numerous reports that were attributed to anonymous sources at the club.

“We’re hunting for this chap called Mr Reliable Source who apparently resides inside these four walls of our offices,” Gumede said. He said the club was keen to know who was supplying the media with key information, although he did not state what action would be taken in the event that the hunt was successful.

Andrew Langa

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
THE chairperson of the African Union Sports Council Region 5 Council of Ministers Andrew Langa has described attempts by the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa (Anoca) to claim exclusive rights and ownership of the African Games as disrespectful and arrogant. Langa, who is the Sport, Arts and Culture Minister, was responding to a letter written by Anoca president General Palenfo to the African Union (AU) outlining a number of demands as conditions for the Olympic movement to be involved with the African Games.

One of Anoca’s demands is that it should have exclusive ownership of the African Games and that the AU logo and flag should not be used during the games as they are political symbols. Presenting a paper to a Specialised Technical Committee of Ministers of Youth, Culture and Sport meeting in Congo, Brazzaville on Thursday, Minister Langa said not even the qualification for the Olympic Games can sway the African Sports Ministers to sell their birthright.

He said the African renaissance that started in 1963 through the founding of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) sought to liberate people from cultural, economic and political bondage. Lives and limbs were sacrificed for the liberation of the African people and Langa said through their gallant struggles, the freedom fighters rid Africa of colonialism and delivered the freedom enjoyed today.

“Sport played a pivotal role during this struggle under the auspices and ambit of the Supreme Council for Sport in Africa. The continent was divided into seven Sports Development Zones with a clear mandate of ensuring that member states spearheaded sporting programmes and activities that promoted unity, solidarity and Pan-Africanism among our youth,” said Langa.

“Governments therefore were and remain duty bound to invest in human and infrastructural development in order to advance the African youths through sport. To date, our governments continue to set aside massive resources in their budgets even under constricted fiscal space. “We therefore reject and condemn with the utmost contempt, any machinations intended or unintended, by Anoca that seek to reverse the gains of our African renaissance and strongly uphold the decision by our African structures that the African Games will and shall remain owned by member states,” he said.

Langa said the ministers wished to put it on record that they regarded and took great exception to the tone and behaviour with which Anoca addressed the AU and Council of Ministers. He dismissed claims by Anoca that they could grant the African Games Olympic qualification status saying the appropriate bodies were the Association of African Confederations of Sport (AACS) and their International Federations.

The position presented by AUSC Region 5 Ministers of Sport represented by Langa as chairman carried the day and was adopted as the African Ministers’ position. The position was subsequently adopted by the Bureau of the Specialised Technical Committee of Ministers of Youth, Sport, and Culture that met soon after the gathering of the African Ministers of Sport.

Bruce Grobbelaar

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
FORMER Liverpool and Zimbabwe Dream Team goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar has added his voice to the growing calls for embattled Zifa president Cuthbert Dube to step down and allow a person with a new vision to take charge. Grobbelaar, nicknamed The Jungleman during his fairy tale romance with the Dream Team in the early 1990s, said while it could be his desire to return home and assist Zimbabwean football, that can only happen if a new captain takes over the sinking Zifa ship and steers it towards a sound financial footing.

Grobbelaar is now the goalkeepers’ coach at Ottawa Furry in Canada. Speaking on Supersport’s Soccer Africa programme on Thursday night, Grobbelaar said Dube’s leadership had been riddled with corruption claims and he also did not enjoy a good rapport with a number of players.

“The chairman isn’t what he was when he went in there. We also know that he has always struggled with corruption allegations,” said Grobbelaar. Asked why he was not returning to Zimbabwe to help out, especially with the national teams, Grobbelaar said that can only happen if there was a new man at the helm of Zifa.

“If there’s someone that can come there, take Zifa and hold it accountable and see to it that everything is up and running, and then they ask me to go there and help out with the national team, I’ll do that for sure, but that will not happen until the organisation has got a great man there and has got the money for the players, the coach and everything,” said Grobbelaar.

He however hailed Zimbabwean players whom he described as some of the most talented and intelligent in sub-Saharan Africa. The Jungleman said Zimbabwean players were in the same rank with African giants Nigerian, Cameroon and Cote d’Ivoire, countries that have qualified for the World Cup on numerous occasions.

“Zimbabwean players are probably the most intelligent in sub-Saharan Africa. If you go to the north, you’ve to compete with the Nigerians, the Cameroonians and the Ivorians, who are a very strong and organised unit, and that’s why they’ve gone to the World Cup more times than any of the southern African sides,” he said.

Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
HIGHLANDERS have made Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder Kudakwashe Mahachi their prime target for the 2016 season. The South African Premier League giants did not register Mahachi after exhausting all their foreign slots resulting in the player sending a “come get me” tag to the Bulawayo giants. The ginger-haired midfielder failed to get a club in South Africa forcing him to think of returning to Bosso. He had hoped for an Ajax Cape Town loan deal, but the Urban Warriors had also exhausted their foreign slots. The club is home to the Zimbabwean duo of Milton Ncube and Thomas Chideu, both former Bosso players.

Highlanders’ chief executive officer Ndumiso Gumede said the club had approached Mahachi’s team, inquiring about the player’s status. “We enjoy good relations with Mamelodi Sundowns and as it is we’ve made contact with his handlers to establish his exact position,” said Gumede. “Having enjoyed a good time with us when he was on loan last year, I believe that he has seen Highlanders as the best place to develop his career and we would definitely want to have him in our squad if he’s really available.”

Highlanders are aware that Mahachi could draw interest from other teams, hence the move to seal an early deal before the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season ends. Contracts for most Highlanders’ regular players are running out in December and securing a “big” signing in Mahachi could work in Bosso’s favour as they make efforts to retain some of the players. Among players whose deals run out at the end of the year are goalkeepers Ariel Sibanda and Njabulo Nyoni, skipper Felix Chindungwe, vice-captains Erick Mudzingwa and Mthulisi Maphosa, as well as Webster Chingodza.

Utility player Bruce Kangwa is left with another six months. Highlanders and PSL leading goal scorer Knox Mutizwa, who is reported to have attracted Swedish interest, is in his last months of his contract. Mutizwa hit a purple patch after former coach Bongani Mafu moved him from the right wing and played him as a striker. He has scored nine goals from 10 starts.

Bosso chairman Peter Dube said the Bulawayo giants were not in good financial standing making it difficult for them to tie down top players. “We do try to play it safe as a club when it comes to the signing of players but at the moment we don’t have the resources that some of the players will be demanding,” said Dube. “The club is negotiating with some of the players whose contracts are running out, but at the same time we should guard against holding onto players who might not be in the coach’s plans.

“We’re just guarding against increasing the bill by engaging players that we might find difficult to release. “All the decisions that we’re making as a club are being done to try and curb the debt that we have, hence the need to be careful on who we engage,” said Dube.

Callisto Pasuwa

Grace Chingoma Harare Bureau—
WARRIORS coach Callisto Pasuwa still carries the scars of that meltdown against Tanzania in Harare last year, which ended the team’s 2015 Nations Cup story at the first hurdle, and doesn’t want that nightmare to strike his team again. He has called for the right attitude ahead of the crucial African Cup of Nations showdown against Guinea at Rufaro tomorrow where a victory will push his men into a very strong position in the battle for a place in Gabon in 2017. Pasuwa was still an assistant coach to Ian Gorowa, last year, when Zimbabwe were held to a 2-2 draw by Tanzania to crash out of the 2015 Nations Cup qualifiers at the very first hurdle. The Taifa Stars had won their home match 1-0 in Dar-es-Salaam.

Tomorrow, the Warriors hope to make a fresh start in front of their fans in a campaign which started on a promising note following that away victory against Malawi. And yesterday, after training, the former Dynamos midfielder demanded that his charges should employ the right attitude first and everything will then follow. “We were together with Ian Gorowa, and he’s one coach who did very well in terms of my coaching career and on that game, maybe, it was because of the attitude, I’m saying maybe that’s the reason why I’m talking about the attitude to the players.

“We approached that game saying we’re playing at home, we’re playing Tanzania and we’re definitely going to win and we conceded an early goal and in the second half we came again and conceded another goal which isn’t good when you’re playing at home. “You need to score, you should have to defend, it was complacency also on our side when we played that game against Tanzania.”

The coach, who won a record four league titles in a row with Dynamos, says he is going all out for a victory, playing attacking football, but warned he will remain cautious. “We need to be very, very positive in terms of how we fare when we go forward,” said Pasuwa. “We might say we need to be very offensive, but of course, you need to attack and then defend.

“If you attack and attack and leave many spaces at the back you’ll get in trouble. “We need to be a disciplined side, playing it safe will make us have a good result. “If they open up spaces at the back then we’ll use those spaces and again ourselves we shouldn’t leave many gaps when we’re going forward. “We’ve to be very careful in terms of the transition part of it, if we’re attacking and we lose the ball, what we’re saying is that we’ve to come back and defend.”

Guinea, Pasuwa says, should not be underrated at all.

“Guinea are one of the Afcon contenders, they’ve played in the Afcon finals many times, so we shouldn’t underrate them, we’ve to go there with the right attitude. “Remember, when they played in Morocco (against Swaziland) they had a second string national team and this time they’ve called up their professionals and it’s going to be a different game altogether,” he said.

The coach says while he would have loved to have more time with the charges, everyone in the team is aware that they have to get three points tomorrow afternoon.

“Being my first time having these boys together, some of them it was their first time coming together, we would’ve loved maybe one or two weeks in order for us to shape up the team but, again, that’s the national team for us.

“I think this time it was better than the first game when we played Malawi and I hope the combinations will come good but again it’s how these boys will communicate that matters,” he said. Pasuwa said he was not reading much into their opponents who have a lot of players plying their trade in European leagues.

Pasuwa has a relatively strong squad, unlike in the first African Nations Cup tie against Malawi, where their preparations were hampered by chaos with the team arriving in Blantyre just a few hours before the match. But the former Dynamos coach quickly warned that the strong squad he has at his disposal doesn’t guarantee results but the players would have to earn their victory. “The victory in Malawi was very crucial considering that we didn’t prepare well but we managed to come out with a result,” said Pasuwa.

“Now that we’re playing at home and we’ve got more players in the team that’s one area, maybe, I’m afraid will make people just think we’re going to win. “We’ve to play first and do enough to win that game and that comes with playing the game with the right attitude and we need to be positive throughout the contest.”

Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
HWANGE’S Southern Region Soccer League outfit Technosphere completed a double over title aspirants Bulawayo City when they beat them 1-0 at Luveve Stadium on Saturday.

Technosphere’s win brought Bulawayo City’s 12-match unbeaten run to a halt.

The coal miners’ team is one of the two teams to collect maximum points against City in the first half of the season. The other team is Casmyn who were the last club to beat the championship favourites on Week 9, managing a massive 3-0 win in Hwange.

On Saturday, Bekithemba Nyoni rose from the bench to convert a second half penalty that ensured Technosphere maximum points.

Technosphere assistant coach, former Highlanders striker Thamsanqa Vundla, praised his charges for a disciplined performance and said the victory against City was not a fluke.

“We really prepared for this game and we knew that for us to get a point we had to close City in the midfield and be on the lookout for a blind side attack. Our game plan was to sit back and get them on attack, hence the resultant penalty we got as we were breaking for goal. I think the other thing is that they needed the win more than us which made them vulnerable,” said Vundla.

City’s defeat saw their seven-point lead reduced to four by Bulawayo Chiefs who clobbered anchors Mpumalanga 6-0. The local authority owned club is on 49 points.

City who are still on course to secure PSL promotion despite the loss, said the result was a wakeup call.

Their next encounter is against Nust who they beat 3-0 in the reverse fixture through goals by ex-Bosso defender Bruce Tshuma, Ryan Mabhena and former Quelaton midfielder Eddie Nkulungo.

“I think the loss will motivate the boys to work harder. For us, nothing has changed and we remain on track,” said City’s assistant coach Farai Mujokoro.

With a number of experienced players in their squad, City have a potential to bounce back to winning ways and keep their campaign on track.

City cannot afford to lose any game now as that will allow Chiefs, who were weekend’s biggest scoreline winners, to further close the gap and exert pressure on them.

Chiefs beat Mpumalanga 6-0 getting their goals from Proud Zireni, Desire Shumbanhete and double scorers Joseph Mutambiranwa and Mkhululi Dube.

Casmyn’s 0-0 draw against Black Boots cost them the third spot to Bantu Rovers who walked over Old Nic Mine to take their points tally to 37, one above Casmyn.

Victoria Falls-based side Amagagasi beat Agent Sawu’s Ntabazinduna 1-0 while Bekithemba “Super” Ndlovu’s army side Indlovu Iyanyathela lost 2-1 to the Tapela Ngwenya coached Makomo.

Weekend Results

Nust 2-1 Trumus, Casmyn 0-0 Black Boots, Ntabazinduna 0-1 Amagagasi, Old Nic Mine 0-3 Bantu Rovers, Bulawayo Chiefs 6-0 Mpumalanga, Hwange Juniors 0-1 ZPC Hwange, Bulawayo City 0-1 Technosphere, Indlovu Iyanyathela 2-1 Makomo

Former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba scored a hat-trick on his first Major League Soccer start as Montreal Impact beat Chicago Fire 4-3.

The 37-year-old made his debut as a substitute in a defeat two weeks ago.

But on Saturday he scored one first-half goal, made it 3-3 on the hour and then headed the winner four minutes later.

The former Ivory Coast international is the first player to get a hat-trick within his opening two MLS matches.

Drogba, who is his country’s all-time leading scorer with 65 goals in 105 international appearances, signed for Montreal in July after leaving Chelsea.

Meanwhile, former Newcastle striker Obafemi Martins and ex-Fulham and Tottenham forward Clint Dempsey were the goalscorers for Seattle Sounders in a 2-1 win over Toronto. — BBC Sport

A large Sunday Times headline in capital letters, EMBARRASSING, summed up the mood of South Africans after a shock Africa Cup of Nations defeat in Mauritania this weekend.

Declared by Bafana Bafana coach Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba as a “must win” 2017 qualifier, it ended in a humiliating 3-1 defeat against rivals 42 places lower in the world rankings.

Losing left 1996 African champions South Africa bottom of Group M with one point after an almost equally dismal showing in Durban last June when held 0-0 by lowly ranked Gambia.

If four-time Cup of Nations title-holders Cameroon won in Gambia late yesterday they would go five points clear of Bafana with four matchdays remaining.

“A damn disaster” said the City Press headline and The Sunday Independent wrote “Bungling Bafana bite the dust in Mauritania”.

Some social media users suggested the team be disbanded and replaced by the national-23 squad while others believe CAF Confederation Cup semifinalists Orlando Pirates should represent the country.

The Sunday Times wondered if former Pirates star Mashaba was aware that the match in Nouakchott would be played on artificial turf.

And if he was aware, why were none of the practice sessions in Johannesburg this week conducted on such a surface?

Mashaba, who replaced unsuccessful Gordon Igesund last year and initially produced some impressive away victories, was also evasive about how much homework was done on Mauritania.

“We’ve checked their international records,” was all he would say.

Videos of Mauritania playing three 2014 African Nations Championship matches in South Africa were considered unnecessary viewing.

While the tactics of Mashaba in north-west Africa are sure to be scrutinised, the real issue is mental with South Africa never matching the fighting spirit of Mauritania.

A home team using a no-frills, physical approach were clearly desperate to win before an excited, vocal near-capacity crowd at the 10,000-capacity Stade Olympique.

Many South Africans looked like they were in Nouakchott under duress and could not wait to board the 10-hour flight south to Johannesburg.

Goalkeeper and captain Itumeleng Khune and midfielder and former skipper Dean Furman were woeful.

Khune allowed a long-range free-kick to slip from his grasp into the net after five minutes while Furman had a ‘fresh air’ shot and earned a needless yellow card before being substituted.

After hosting and winning the 1996 Cup of Nations, South Africa have been steadily slipping down the rankings to lie 17 in Africa and 72 in the world this month. Mauritania are ranked 33 in Africa and 114 in the world.

South Sudan, the fourth weakest African national team celebrated a first Cup of Nations victory by edging 2015 semi-finalists Equatorial Guinea 1-0 in Juba. Wol Tong scored the match-winner seven minutes after half-time in the capital of the youngest African nation, which achieved independence from Sudan four years ago.

France-based Fode Dore scored all four goals as Congo Brazzaville bounced back from a disappointing draw with Kenya three months ago by winning 4-2 in Guinea-Bissau.

Morocco won 3-0 in Sao Tome e Principe. There were 1-0 home victories for Liberia over Tunisia and Botswana over Burkina Faso, and Seychelles and Ethiopia drew 1-1 in other qualifiers. — AFP

The Netherlands’ hopes of qualifying for Euro 2016 suffered a serious blow as they were beaten heavily in Turkey.

Midfielder Oguzhan Ozyakup raced on to an Arda Turan through ball to put the home side ahead with a chipped finish.

Turan doubled the lead by stealing the ball from a dithering Daley Blind before firing past the weak hands of Jesper Cillessen at the near post.

Netherlands pressed hard for a way back into the match after half-time but Burak Yilmaz added a third late on.

The result means Netherlands must rely on Turkey dropping points in their last two games if they are to finish third.

Whoever finishes behind Group A’s likely top two of Iceland and Czech Republic will be guaranteed a place in a two-legged play-off against another of the third-placed sides.

That is the only path open to the Dutch, but their fate is now out of their own hands after Turkey leapfrogged them with a convincing win. — Reuters

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
WITH less than a third of matches left before the 2015 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season winds up, football fans are already debating the selection of the Soccer Stars of the Year.

Fans and players are already coming up with names of players likely to get the 45th Soccer Star of the Year gong.

Rival fans are engaging each other in robust debates as they look at their teams’ potential and as usual the country’s biggest two sides, Dynamos and Highlanders will always be at loggerheads.

Highlanders last had a player winning the big one 13 years ago when Dazzy Kapenya scooped it. DeMbare have dominated the last four awards contributing three players to the podium in Washington Arubi (2011), Denver Mukamba (2012) and Tawanda Muparati (2013).

ZPC Kariba’s Dennis Daudi is the reigning Soccer Star but will certainly not join George Shaya and Peter Ndlovu in winning it back to back.

The stars’ selection was inaugurated way back in 1969 with the legendary Dynamos menace then, George Shaya winning the gong before Tendai Chieza (Mhangura) and Peter Nyama (Chibuku Shumba) won it in 1971 and 1972 respectively. The Mastermind reclaimed his prize in 1973 and on three consecutive occasions in 1975, 1976 and 1977.

Besides Shaya, legendary, Peter Ndlovu and the late Stanley ‘Sinyo’ Ndunduma are the only other players to win the award more than once, Ndlovu winning it in 1990 and the following year while Sinyo was the winner in 1981 and 1985.

While some yesteryear stars might not have won it more than once, they certainly graced the calendar as one of the 11 finalists on a number of occasions.

Questions have therefore been asked as to why such things no longer happen with the present crop of players.

Players who have been selected in the last decade have really failed to justify their nomination, with some even completely failing to command a start jersey in their teams the following seasons. Some, who would have been fortunate to find foreign teams because of their selection, have turned into a national embarrassment after being offloaded there.

Former Dynamos player, Denver Mukamba, who won the award in 2012 is a good example.

Yesteryear players used to perform for seasons.

Who then is to blame for all this? Is it an issue of vanishing talent? Is the problem with the selectors? Is it the selection criteria?

Critics have blamed members of the media for becoming fanatics of certain players and teams to an extent that their selection gets shrouded in controversy. There have been calls to make public the selectors’ votes as part of measures to fight biased selection.

“Oh yes definitely, I’m, as you know, the Zimbabwe journos’ representative on the Fifa Ballon d;Or and one of the pre-conditions before you agree every year to take part in the voting process is that your vote is made public soon after the winners are announced. If you don’t want that, you’re out,” respected radio and television personality Charles ‘CNN’ Mabika said yesterday.

Veteran sports journalist and former Chronicle Sports Editor, Lovemore Dube said the calibre of some members of the panel leaves a lot to be desired.

“Noone disputed the legitimacy of Madinda Ndlovu, Mercedes Sibanda, George Shaya, Oliver Kateya, Alexander Maseko, Ephraim Dzimbiri, James Takavada and David Mandigora.

“While they made it onto the calendar, they were regulars in the national teams with consistent performances. Events of the last decade have left journalists with egg on the face as some of the players they’ve selected have only graced the calendar once,” said Dube.

There was a national outcry in 2013 when Premier Soccer League and sponsors used a complex Spain system known as Zamora to select the Goalkeeper of the Year.

The formula saw Herbert Rusawo of Black Rhinos winning the award. Nothing has been heard of the player since then.

Previous Soccer Star of the Year winners:

George Shaya (1969,1972,1975,1976,1977), Tendai Chieza (1970), Peter Nyama (1971), Ernest Kamba (1973), Moses Moyo (1974), George Rollo (1978), Shacky Tauro (1979), David Mandigora (1980), Stanley Ndunduma (1981, 1985), Japhet Mparutsa (1982), Ephert Lungu (1983), James Takavada (1984), Moses Chunga (1986), Mercedes Sibanda (1987), Ephraim Chawanda (1988), Masimba Dinyero (1989), Peter Ndlovu (1990,1991), George Nechironga (1990), Wilfred Mugeyi (1992), Agent Sawu (1993), Memory Mucherahowa (1994), Tauya Murehwa (1995), Steward Murisa (1996), Walter Chuma (1997), Zenzo Moyo (2000), Maxwell Dube (2001), Dazzy Kapenya (2002), Energy Murambadoro (2003), Cephas Chimedza (2004), Joseph Kamwendo (2005), Clemence Matawu (2006), Murape Murape (2007), Evans Chikwaikwai (2008), Ramson Zhuwawo (2009), Charles Sibanda (2010), Washington Arubi (2011), Denver Mukamba (2012), Tawanda Muparati (2013), Dennis Dauda (2014).

Lewis Hamilton cruised to a dominant Italian Grand Prix victory to put a stranglehold on the world title – and was cleared of breaking tyre rules.

Hamilton’s seventh victory this season puts him 53 points ahead of team-mate Nico Rosberg as the German retired.

Mercedes were investigated on the grounds the tyres were below the minimum permitted pressure.

But the stewards allowed Hamilton to keep his victory after ruling Mercedes had followed safe operating procedures.

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel was second as Rosberg suffered an engine failure with three laps to go.

Hamilton survived a scare in the final laps when his team told him he had to drive flat out but not what the problem was.

It seems Mercedes were trying to get Hamilton to build a lead of more than 25 seconds in case of a penalty for the tyre pressure, which was 0.3psi lower than the minimum amount specified by Pirelli on safety grounds.

Hamilton crossed the line exactly 25.0 seconds ahead of Vettel.

Rosberg’s left-rear tyre was also found to be below the required pressure – by 1.1psi in his case.

Williams’s Felipe Massa fended off a late attack from team-mate Valtteri Bottas to take the final podium place.

Hamilton’s win, his most crushing of a season he has dominated from the first race in Australia back in March, came despite reliability concerns over an upgraded engine fitted to his car.

Both Mercedes drivers started the weekend with the new-specification unit, which used up all the team’s seven remaining development ‘tokens’ in one go.

But Rosberg’s had to be removed after the team discovered a contamination problem with it after final practice.

After checking Hamilton’s engine, Mercedes decided it was safe to keep it in the car for the race, but the team admitted that it would be a nervous afternoon.

They also expected a major challenge from Ferrari, who had also introduced an upgraded engine for this high-speed track.

Hamilton was in imperious form. The 30-year-old built a 1.5-second lead on the first lap after concerns about an aggressive start from Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen on the front row alongside him disappeared when the Finn’s car bogged down at the start and he was swamped by the field.

Hamilton blasted away from Vettel in second place, building a 12-second lead in 20 laps, sometimes pulling away at as much as a second a lap.

His lead over Vettel was out to well over 20 seconds when suddenly there was a scare in the closing laps as he was asked to start producing flat-out laps.

His engineer Peter Bonnington told him “don’t ask questions, just execute”, adding: “We’ll explain later.”

It emerged that the reason for this was to build a gap in case Mercedes were given a time penalty for lower-than-permitted tyre temperatures on the grid.

But the stewards ruled that the tyres were at the correct temperature when fitted to the car and that the blankets which keep them warm were unplugged and at a lower temperature than the maximum permitted.

This lower temperature would mean the tyre lost pressure and would explain why it dipped below the minimum, which is why Mercedes were cleared of any wrongdoing.

Rather than try to threaten Hamilton, who soon pulled his advantage out to more than 20 seconds, Vettel had to look backwards at the advancing Rosberg.

His fellow German was only five seconds behind once the two had completed their pit stops, after Rosberg leapfrogged both Williams cars in one go with an early pit stop and stunning first lap out of the pits.

Rosberg was at a disadvantage having stopped seven laps earlier than Vettel, but he inched towards the Ferrari, getting the gap down to 3.7 seconds with 12 laps to go.

With three laps to go, Rosberg was two right behind Vettel but then the Mercedes stopped with flames pouring from his engine at the second chicane.

The engine that had been fitted on Saturday had already done five races, and it seems the demands of Monza were too much for it.

Behind the Williams drivers, Raikkonen passed Force India’s Sergio Perez for sixth place with three laps to go, moving up to fifth after Rosberg’s retirement.

It was a good comeback but a disappointing result after such a strong qualifying performance.

The Mexican’s team-mate Nico Hulkenberg won a close fight with Sauber’s Marcus Ericsson, who was passed on the last lap for eighth by Red Bull’s Daniel Ricciardo, whose team-mate Daniil Kvyat took the final point in 10th, both Red Bulls fighting up from the back of the grid. — BBC Sport

Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
THE National Darts Association of Zimbabwe is in consultation with the Zimbabwe National Youth Games organisers to have darts as one of the sport codes at the games beginning next year.

Ndaz president Meynard Moyo confirmed the development and said if granted, the move will see an increase in the interest for the sport from the youths as many have negative perceptions about the game. For long the sport of darts has been seen as an old people’s sport that can only be played in pubs.

“We have spoken to the guys (ZNYG organisers) informally but they seemed to buy the idea which is encouraging. We’ll engage them formally so that everything is done above board as we push for the recognition of darts at that level,” said Moyo, who recently led Team Zimbabwe Youth Darts squad to second spot at the Zone Six, Region 5 Darts Confederation 5th Youth Championships 2015 held at Windhoek Showgrounds in Namibia from August 24 to 27.

Moyo’s executive has over the last few years been on a massive campaign to squash misconceptions about the sport which many view as a sport for pub revellers.

The drive saw the banning of smoking during league or competition matches while plans are also underway to move away from holding matches in pubs so that young players can also take part in league matches.

The National Association of Secondary School Heads (Nash) endorsed the sport into their curriculum.

Ndaz is one of the few national sport associations that are properly run and with good support from the corporate world, Moyo’s executive has all the capabilities of raising the country’s flag high at regional and international competitions. Last year, the association was named the Sport Development of the Year winner at the Annual National Sports Awards.

Grace Chingoma Harare Bureau
PROPHET Walter Magaya again came to the rescue of the Warriors yesterday when he had to meet the players and persuade them to go into the battle against Guinea in the crunch 2017 Nations Cup qualifier at Rufaro.

The Warriors, who were promised $42,000 by Zifa president Cuthbert Dube ahead of their first qualifier against Malawi but have not been paid, yesterday morning threatened to boycott the match.

Tension has been simmering in their camp all week and matters came to a head yesterday when the players decided that, unless they were paid their outstanding winning bonuses, they would not fulfil the game against Guinea.

Magaya, who bailed the team out to enable them to travel for the game against Malawi, was then roped in to try and rescue the situation.

The prophet, who is a football fanatic, held a meeting with Zifa board members, Twine Phiri and John Phiri, in the company of chief executive John Mashingaidze, where the association’s leadership pleaded with him to bail them out.

Magaya met the players at 11am and addressed them.

He asked them to go and play the match, for the sake of their nation and fans, and said he would be the guarantor in a deal where Zifa promised to release $30,000, generated from gate receipts, towards the players.

Magaya told the players that should Zifa fail to honour their part of the agreement, he would then pay the $30,000.

The prophet also gave the Warriors $20,000, to boost their morale, ahead of the big game yesterday.

Magaya confirmed to our Harare Bureau that he had stepped in to help diffuse a volatile situation.

“I was asked to come in and help because the players were saying that they wouldn’t leave their camp for the stadium if the issue of their money wasn’t resolved,” Magaya said.

“I’ve talked to the boys and I’ve also given them $20,000.

“The good thing is that they’ve resolved that they’re now going to play the game and that’s what’s important right now.

“This is for our country and that’s why I had to come in and provide the help and talk to the players.”

One of his aides said the prophet was not amused that Zifa left it until very late when they knew that they had a crisis in their camp.

“Everyone knew about this match well in advance and they could have approached him just after the Malawi match.

“But meetings and phone calls only started last night. But the prophet loves football and this is a national team we’re talking about, and he has no choice.

“He’s going to South Africa end of this month for a crusade and it would be embarrassing to him as a citizen of this country that his national team failed to fulfil an important match so he had to put his head on the block,” said the aide.

Magaya has in the past bailed the Warriors and the Mighty Warriors but publicly criticised Zifa recently after he questioned why the money he gave to the national team, which went to South Africa for the Cosafa Cup, did not get to the players and their coaching staff.

Zifa also have to use proceeds from the gate receipts to pay back the loan they received from a Harare man to pay $12,000 for the air tickets for the foreign-based players, $6,000 for the air tickets of the referees, their match fees and accommodation costs and duty for the new kit that was used by the Warriors.

Ellina Mhlanga Harare Bureau
THE Minister of State in the Office of Vice-President Phelekezela Mphoko, Tabetha Kanengoni-Malinga, says Zifa are sabotaging the Warriors’ 2017 Nations Cup campaign and derailing the government’s efforts to bring sanity into domestic football.

A fierce critic of the Zifa Board, she said the stand-off between the Asssociation and the Warriors, hours before yesterday’s big Nations Cup qualifier at Rufaro, was a case in point.

“I think this has to be a thing of the past. We’re drawing very very close to coming to a solution on this matter,” Kanengoni-Malinga, a former Deputy Sports Minister, told our Harare Bureau

“We’ve our recommendations that’ve come from the SRC (Sport and Recreation Commission) that’ll positively deal with these issues that’ve been happening.

“Zifa can’t continue to hold the guys at ransom. They need to be mentally fit every time they go to play and they need to be mentally fit every time they go to practice.

“They really mustn’t trivialise the work that the government is trying to do in order to bring up football in Zimbabwe.

“And it seems they (Zifa) are acting more as saboteurs than contributing to the positive development of the game, so to me Zifa is sabotaging Zimbabwe football and that has to change forthwith. And I’m sure this change is coming very, very soon.

“I’m definitely working on that. I’m very happy with the report so far. It’ll bring the much needed positive development that we wanted and I’m sure the nation will be very happy with the recommendations that came from the SRC, now is just time to action it.”

Kanengoni-Malinga said yesterday’s events might have affected the team’s performance on the field of play as she noted that there was a lot of talent and experienced players in the Warriors team that played yesterday.

“As an athlete you play a mental game and you play a physical game and today’s action definitely contributed negatively.

“But I think the fans helped them to pick up, you know when the stadium is this full it helps to contribute to a positive development, so Zimbabwe came through today .

“It was a very good game, the support was amazing. The line-up was really good, I think it was a good choice of players. I think we could have done better given the amount of talent we had on the field, we had some experienced players here. Maybe it was preparation, maybe the team hadn’t gelled so well but we’ll take the draw.

“But it would have been better if we had scored more.”

Zifa board member development, John Phiri confirmed that they received money from Walter Magaya while the association contributed $30,000 towards the players allowances but denied that the players were threatening to boycott the game.

Washington Arubi

Grace Chingoma Harare Bureau

Zimbabwe 1-1 Guinea

A HOWLER by goalkeeper Washington Arubi robbed the Warriors of a victory they deserved in a 2017 Nations Cup qualifier at Rufaro that they dominated against opponents content to just sit back and battle for a point.

The veteran ‘keeper apologised for his schoolboy blunder, which proved costly, with the Warriors on the back foot as early as the third minute and, although Knowledge Musona struck a superb equaliser, they could not force the win their efforts merited.

Arubi, jittery all afternoon, was a bundle of nerves as he failed to deal with a back pass from Danny Phiri, the ball after striking his leg, bounced to Guinea forward Sylla Idrissa who easily converted.

It deflated the morale of a huge crowd that turned up for the big match although, to their credit, the Warriors battled back from that setback and equalised through Musona’s beautiful goal in the 34th minute.

However, despite a number of chances, including a Nyasha Mushekwi header that skidded off the post, a Cuthbert Malajila header from close range, with the ‘keeper beaten, which somehow missed the target, the Warriors could not get the killer goal they needed to beat their bogey opponents.

Arubi said he felt he let down the nation by conceding such a comical goal.

“I want to apologise to the nation that I made a mistake. It was a back pass and when I back peddled that extra bounce changed the speed of the ball and hit me on the knee,” he said.

“As a goalkeeper, the last man in the line of defence, if you make a mistake there’s no one to cover for you.

“I’m an experienced goalkeeper, sometimes I make mistakes and I’ve managed to bounce back.

“I would like to thank the nation for the support they gave me afterwards and we managed to bounce back and I also recovered well.”

But if Arubi’s error was a big blow, Malajila should also shoulder some blame for not converting a great chance in the 71st minute, when presented with a free close-range header, which should have won the match for the Warriors.

Warriors coach Callisto Pasuwa refused to blame his ‘keeper, saying this was all part of the game, and instead chose to praise his men for their spirited efforts against a tough opponent who kept about 10 men in their half for long periods.

“We conceded an early goal. It was a mistake but again that’s part of football. And again offensive wise, we weren’t as much as we wanted but it was okay. I think, maybe, it was a decent show,” he said.

“We need to prepare as much as we can, have four, five days of preparing in order for these guys to have those combinations.

“Maybe, in the first minutes of the game, there was a lot of bad communication in terms of how they were faring in defence but as the game progressed we could see that the cohesion was coming up.

“What we’re saying is we need more days in camp.”

He could not be drawn to comment on whether the players’ standoff with Zifa, four hours before the crucial match, could have affected their morale and focus.

“I can’t say anything on that, there are better people to comment on that. As a coach I can’t say anything on that,” he said.

On a day the fans backed the Warriors by coming out in huge numbers, centreback Costa Nhamoinesu was a tower of strength in defence, Eric Chipeta never put a foot wrong, skipper Willard Katsande was imposing in midfield where Danny Phiri also had a good game.

However, Nyasha Mushekwi, struggled — something that is bound to happen when you play for a team that does not employ a creative midfielder — and Pasuwa also appeared to suck life out of his men with a questionable substitution of the slippery Khama Billiat.

“Nhamoinesu is one defender who’s very steady and very comfortable,” said Pasuwa.

“Remember we need height in the centre, which is one area we’ve been covered and I think he did very well and it’s very unfortunate we conceded an early goal.”

The Sparta Prague defender hardly put a foot wrong the whole afternoon and became the darling of the crowd as the match wore on.

Guinea assistant coach Laurent Hatton said Zimbabwe gave them a good match and they were happy to get their first 2017 Afcon qualifying point.

“We were happy to score the goal first, you saw the action we’re sure maybe an offside five or six metres (Musona goal), so we’re happy to go back to Conakry with a draw. I think it’s a good result for us,” he said.

“We’re a new staff, a new team, we need time. So we now have time until March, the next game, so we’ve time to organise and prepare the team in the good conditions. Of course, we’ll qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations. We’re happy because it’s good ambiance, it’s a nice stadium, all the people were happy. The spirit was good, we’re happy to play against a good team. We’ll see which team would be qualifying, we’ll see in the next game which team would be the best.”

Musona scored Zimbabwe’s equaliser, as he has often done for his nation, with a perfectly timed run from the right flank, the covering defender wide on the left side of the Guinea defence keeping him on side, he controlled Phiri’s chipped assist and then stroked the ball home for a beauty.

He could have won the match for his nation but his brilliant free-kick, late in the game, was saved by the Guinea ‘keeper.

There was another goalline clearance for the visitors to make but, they too, had a great chance to win on the break but they missed it.

Teams

Zimbabwe: W Arubi, P Jaure, M Ncube, C Nhamoinesu, E Chipeta, W Katsande K Musona, D Phiri, C Malajila, N Mushekwi (M Rusike 69th minute), K Biliart (K Mahachi 83rd minute)

Guinea: M Yattara, F Pogba, I Sylla, F Camara, O Sidibe, A Bangoura, M Diarra, L Camara, B Fofafia, S Soumah (M Yattara 72nd minute)