Ricky Zililo Senior Sports Reporter
CHICKEN Inn and FC Platinum said yesterday that they are not losing sleep after being knocked out of the Chibuku Super Cup at the weekend. The two sides said their focus was now on winning the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title. Chapungu sprung a shocker on Saturday, knocking out favourites Chicken Inn 5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 stalemate in regulation time.
FC Platinum failed to defend their title after losing their quarter-final encounter 6-7 to Dynamos on penalties following a goalless draw in normal time. Dynamos will now face Chapungu in the semi-finals while ZPC Kariba, who thrashed How Mine 3-0, will battle it out with Harare City for a ticket to the final.
Chicken Inn and FC Platinum’s coaches were quick to accept defeat and focus on their next assignments. “We lost on penalties and you really can’t put the blame on anybody. The guys did well building from the back and bringing it into the midfield, but I think there wasn’t much creativity in the final third. But I’m proud of the boys and now we’re shifting focus to the league,” said Norman Mapeza, FC Platinum’s coach.
The Zvishavane side is second on the league table with 44 points, five behind pacesetters Chicken Inn, after 23 matches. FC Platinum have been in terrific form going on a 14-match unbeaten streak in the league.
They might be out of the Chibuku Super Cup, but they are closing in on Chicken Inn in the league. After whipping Dynamos 3-1 in a league encounter in Zvishavane last week, their cup clash was bound to be a tricky affair as the Harare giants were out to avoid defeat at all costs. DeMbare rectified their defensive blunders that cost them three points at Mandava Stadium with aplomb.
Their backline managed to thwart FC Platinum’s raids in the opening quarter where Young Warriors’ winger Marshal Mudehwe, Obrey Chirwa and Brian Muzondiwa took turns to harass the defenders. FC Platinum will be hoping to put the disappointment of the cup loss behind them by beating Tsholotsho FC, whom they face in their next league encounter.
Travelling to Bulawayo to face the Zhwane Boys will not be easy for the Zvishavane side as Tsholotsho FC equally need maximum points to survive relegation. FC Platinum are aware that dropping points at this stage could either see them lose second place to Dynamos or allow Chicken Inn to widen the gap.
Chicken Inn coach Joey Antipas, whose side takes on Dynamos in the league, blamed the Chapungu loss to fatigue. “Without taking anything away from Chapungu, I think the midweek trip to Triangle took a toll on my boys. However, this defeat is water under the bridge and I think this gives us purpose to fight on in the league. With uninterrupted concentration, we’re hoping to bounce back to winning ways in our next league game,” said Antipas.
The Gamecocks came from a goal down to force a draw and take the Chapungu game into a penalty shootout. It is that ability to come from behind that makes Antipas believe in his troops. “To be honest, cup games are tricky but the fact that we never lost hope and fought back speaks volumes about the calibre of players we have. The guys gave their all and I’ve seen their determination to win games at all costs in the last two matches that we’ve played. Against Triangle we came from a goal down to win the match 2-1,” Antipas said.
How Mine were given a 3-0 hiding by ZPC Kariba. A brace by Raphael Manuvire and Protasho Kabwe powered the electricity generators into the semi-finals.
The gold miners continued their pathetic show even after the departure of Luke Masomere, who resigned last week. The defeat to ZPC Kariba wasn’t a good start for stand in coach Jeremiah Makota and he spoke of the need to concentrate on the league as they are slowly slipping into the relegation zone.
“We’re in the relegation zone and our main aim is to avoid going down. Against ZPC Kariba, we were testing one or two things and we hope to get things right when we play our next league game,” Makota said. How Mine’s next league match is away in Gweru against strugglers Whawha. It will be a repeat of the Chibuku Super Cup quarter-finals when Harare City welcome Triangle United at Rufaro Stadium for a league match. Harare City beat Triangle 5-0 in the Chibuku Super Cup.
Chibuku Super Cup quarter-finals results
Saturday: Chicken Inn 1-1 Chapungu (Chapungu won 5-3 on penalties), Triangle United 0-5 Harare City
Sunday: How Mine 0-3 ZPC Kariba, FC Platinum 0-0 Dynamos (Dynamos won 7-6 on penalties)
Chibuku Super Cup semi-finals draw
Chapungu v Dynamos, Harare City v ZPC Kariba
Castle Lager PSL Week 23 Fixtures
Chapungu v Buffaloes, Dongo Sawmill v Hwange, Harare City v Triangle United, Chicken Inn v Dynamos, Flame Lily v ZPC Kariba, Whawha v How Mine, Caps United v Highlanders, Tsholotsho FC v FC Platinum
P W D L F A GD Pts
Chicken Inn 23 15 4 4 35 16 19 49
FC Platinum 23 13 5 5 43 19 24 44
Dynamos 23 11 9 3 28 17 11 42
Triangle United 23 10 7 6 36 18 18 37
Harare City 23 8 10 5 24 18 6 34
Caps United 23 8 10 5 16 16 0 34
Chapungu 23 8 8 7 20 21 -1 32
How Mine 23 8 7 8 25 26 -1 31
Hwange 23 6 11 6 24 23 1 29
Highlanders 23 7 7 9 26 23 3 28
Buffaloes 23 5 10 8 18 30 -12 25
ZPC Kariba 23 5 9 9 28 30 -2 24
Tsholotsho 23 4 9 10 14 25 -11 21
Flame Lily 23 3 10 10 17 29 -12 19
Whawha 23 4 7 12 13 41 -28 19
Dongo Sawmill 23 3 8 11 13 28 15 18