Under fire Mutasa safe, for now It’s 2005 revisited

DYNAMOS have said firing under fire coach Lloyd Mutasa is not the solution to the challenges the Glamour Boys are currently facing.

Club president Solomon Sanyamandwe told The Herald they will focus on giving more support to the technical team in their fight for survival.

“Sometimes things get bad so that you focus on the bigger challenges that are beyond the surface. Firing the coach at the moment is not the best solution,” he said.

“We are in a delicate situation and it needs us to be level-headed. The team has hit a bad patch and we don’t want to play the blame game because of that. It’s something we hope to overcome.

“If you watched the game against Harare City you will agree with me that this is not a team that is beyond redemption. We have that hope we will bounce back.

“The boys are committed and they just need to make sure they start scoring goals. There is no reason to panic at this juncture. Instead, we need to sit down and analyse where we are getting it wrong and focus on correcting that.”

Dynamos will clash with struggling Bulawayo Chiefs in the Chibuku Super Cup first round at Rufaro on Saturday.

“This should be the turning point. We have to win both matches. I believe our leadership doesn’t owe anyone anything and we expect the team to deliver on the pitch.

“Ever since we came into office some few months back, I think we have made significant strides in addressing the challenges we inherited at the club.

“Of course, there are one or two things which still need to be addressed to take Dynamos back on its feet.

“We have a dedicated team to do that. If the challenges were insurmountable then we should have thrown in the towel already,” said Sanyamandwe.

Midfielder Gift Saunyama became a target for the disgruntled Dynamos supporters on Sunday as emotions ran high in the Glamour Boys camp. He provoked the wrath of the supporters when he showed US cents on its release, was the highest note in circulation in this country back then and the gloom appeared to also have cast its spell on domestic sport with the Zimbabwe Davis Cup and the rugby national teams all doing badly that year.

The Chevrons, too, were not spared as they were bowled out for just 54 in a Test match during their tour of South Africa that year.

But, it was not all doom and gloom. Kirsty Coventry won gold in both the 100m and 200m backstroke at the 2005 World Championships in Montreal, Canada, where her extraordinary performances helped Zimbabwe finish third in the medal count.

Zimbabwe also became the first country in Southern Africa, that year, to register a decline in HIV prevalence, with the rate among pregnant women declining from 26 percent in 2002 to 21 percent.

For Dynamos fans, 2005 is a year they remember, for all the wrong reasons, when the Glamour Boys limped throughout the season and found themselves facing the grim possibility of being relegated, should they have lost their final match against championship-chasing Masvingo United, at Mucheke.

Not even three straight victories, in a strong finish to the season which had seen them beat Eiffel Wildacts 2-1, Motor Action 4-1 and

no urgency after he was substituted in the second half of their match against Harare City.

The midfielder yesterday apologised to the supporters for the incident.

“I was subjected to general abuse from individuals gathered outside the stadium. However, as a professional footballer, I understand that we tend to get labelled with certain titles which I accept comes with the territory,” he said.

“I also understand that at the back of the disappointing result, emotions tend to run high for all involved.

“Nonetheless, within the crowd gathered outside the stadium, there was an individual who repeatedly Railstars 5-0, had been enough to move them clear of relegation trouble ahead of the final weekend of the marathon.

They had to win at Mucheke, for them to be sure of avoiding the chop, and — on a pitch soaked by relentless rain that afternoon — they did just that. Clive Mwale and Elliot Matsika provided the goals that secured the crucial victory which, at the same time, ended Masvingo United’s hopes of winning the league title.

Of course, with Njube Sundowns losing 2-5 to Motor Action, it meant that even a defeat for DeMbare in Masvingo would not have sent them down into Division One. But, such was the team’s lifeless campaign that season, there are many of their fans who believe this was the worst collection of Glamour Boys in history.

Statistics also appear to support that narrative. But, the Class of 2005 might also have found their match, in terms of the worst group of Glamour Boys, in the Class of 2018.

And, the current DeMbare side now need the spirit of that group, 13 years ago, which won their last four matches, with two of their victories being secured by goals scored in the 90th minute, for them to survive the chop.

After 26 matches, the DeMbare Classes of 2005 and 2018, have the same number of victories, SEVEN, from 26 matches, as if to confirm

hurled abuse and continuously threatened to physically manhandle me with the intention of triggering a response from me and the friends who had come to pick me up after the match.

“As I disregarded his abuse, the individual proceeded to vandalise my friend’s vehicle which had come to pick me up. At that point, in the interest of my safety, I made my way back into the stadium, with the individual pursuing to physically abuse me.

“It is at that point that I gestured with my finger, to this specific character, as I withdrew back into the stadium and he withdrew into the crowd of people. I would like to put on record that I can identify this that they are, indeed, the worst Glamour Boys in history.

While the Class of 2018 have drawn NINE matches, the Class of 2005 — which finished just four points clear of the last relegation slot thanks largely to four wins in their last four matches — had SEVEN draws.

However, while Lloyd Mutasa’s men have TWO more points (30), after 26 games, than the Class of 2005, who had 28 points from the same number of matches.

The current Glamour Boys have scored five goals less than Mwale and his teammates who, at this stage of the campaign, had 25 goals.

Things also change, when one looks at the defence, with the current team having conceded seven times fewer goals than their compatriots in 2005 at this stage of the season.

However, the Class of 2005 — widely acknowledged as the worst Dynamos team in history — found a way to survive relegation, even though they were in trouble going into the final game of the season.

Mutasa and his men, who have been described as misfits and an insult to everything that the DeMbare badge represents, have just eight games not only to save their season, but also probably show they are not the worst Glamour Boys in history.

So far, it’s hard to argue otherwise.

individual — despite not knowing (his) name. I would like to categorically state that there were no physical exchanges, or obscenities I directed to the Dynamos Football Club supporters.

“My biggest regret of course — in all of this — is getting involved in that type of situation, but all I can do now is apologise as much as I possibly can.”

Chibuku Super Cup Fixtures Friday: Harare City v Bulawayo City (Rufaro) Saturday: FC Platinum v Chapungu (Mandava), Ngezi Platinum v Herentals (Baobab), Black Rhinos v Nichrut (NSS), Dynamos v Bulawayo Chiefs (Rufaro)

Sunday: Highlanders v Yadah (Barbourfields), CAPS United v ZPC Kariba (NSS), Triangle United v Shabanie Mine (Gibbo).