WE WENT, FOUGHT AND CONQUERED

WE ARE the COSAFA champions, yes we are, and congratulations to Sunday Chidzambwa and his troops for the record fifth title. As always, we have some rich pickings from the tournament, not just in terms of monetary rewards and silverware, but some important revelations as well.

Some of which will change the Warriors set-up in a good way.

After the Liberia match in June, I remember Norman Mapeza saying that whoever would be Warriors coach should make two or three additions to the squad that did duty on that day.

The goalkeeping position seems to be settled, for now.

Tatenda Mukuruva divided the nation, but George Chigova seems to have everyone behind him and his big frame makes him imposing between the sticks and not many strikers would want to take chances with him.

If George keeps improving, especially on crosses and general fitness, his claim for the Warriors number one jersey would be uncontested for a long time and a bit of ambition can also take him out of South Africa.

At the COSAFA tournament, Gerald Takwara and Liberty Chakoroma, put up a magnificent show to claim recognition for places in the Warriors set-up.

They might not be experienced, but they are up there in terms of steel, skill and zeal.

Chakoroma impressed me more, he is a Toni Kroos type of midfielder, who keeps everything simple and his job is more appreciated when he is not there.

The central striking position is one that has caused headaches for many Warriors coaches and Tendai Ndoro put up an indifferent show against Liberia, justifying Callisto Pasuwa’s continued snub of him.

With Knowledge Musona enjoying playing from wide positions, we need a natural central striker.

The COSAFA Cup Player of the Tournament Knox Muizwa’s name comes into the fray. Surprisingly, he is good in the air for a man of his height and he is also good with both feet, with an excellent burst of speed and good runs off the ball.

We can’t ignore him for the main Warriors team.

It appears most Warriors coaches trust Onismo Bhasera for the leftback position and he has great physique for a defender, but his shortcomings come when we are going forward.

It’s not that he is bad, but he is not the best.

Ocean Mushure’s performances at the 2017 COSAFA Cup reminded us what a roving left wingback can do.

For me, Ocean was the tournament’s best player, assisting and chipping in with goals from open play and deadly from set-pieces, while putting up a remarkable defensive shift and we cannot ignore such performances.

Our centreback position has been causing us headaches for many years now.

Bruce Homora and Jimmy Tigere’s performance in the final cannot go unnoticed, with Bruce reminding us why Black Rhinos have been doing well under his captaincy.

Many people, myself included, questioned Ovidy Karuru’s recall to the Warriors set-up after so many years in the wilderness.

But he has justified his recent recall with an unforgettable COSAFA Cup show and many expected him to be the man-of-thetournament and you can’t fault them.

We can only hope that this is the beginning of a good second bite of the cherry for Karuru.

Such midfielders are needed in the Warriors set-up because he offers a lot given he can dribble, can carry the ball from deep, can thread neat passes and create scoring positions for himself and others.

And, he can score goals, a rarity for Warriors midfielders.

Then there is Talent Chawapiwa and we can only imagine what our Warriors will be like with him, Musona and Khama Billiat on song.

One wonders how on earth Mapeza hasn’t been picking him up for the Warriors.

Maybe, the proverbial phrase, “a prophet is without honour in his own home” applies here.

This boy is the real deal — pace, skill and power and it’s no surprise he is the toast of our media at the moment.

Bothwell Mahlengwe is a banker and retired Premiership footballer and can be contacted, for feedback, on the email - bmahlengwe.cb@gmail.com