Heart Stadium set for expansion
MEMBERS of the First Instance Board are this week expected to inspect the newly-constructed Prophet Walter Magaya’s Heart Stadium ahead of the Premiership season kick-off scheduled for next week.
The 5000-seater facility was built last year and commissioned by President Mnangagwa on December 10.
Boosting a suspended pitch, all-round bucket seats, world-class dug-outs, and topof-the-range change rooms, the ground is expected to pass the test and Yadah will be able to use the venue as their home for the 2024 season.
And engineers are currently on site, carrying out studies on how the stadium could be expanded without disturbing action on the pitch as Prophet Magaya targets to see the facility ready for international football
home team Manica Diamonds.
“We are so excited with the developments that have taken place at the ground,” said Manica Diamonds chairman Masimba Chihowa.
“The condition of the pitch looks good and all the other aspects have been attended to. We are happy with the prospects of playing in Mutare again. But we have to wait for the verdict from the First Instance Body,” said Chihowa.
“The forthcoming season promises to be good because the travelling was hectic; it was expensive and inconvenient and now we expect at least to get some revenue during our home games. It’s good for business,” said Chihowa.
Yadah’s newly constructed The Heart stadium, owned by Yadah is in pristine condition and could be inspected by the FIB is also due for inspection.
The stadium was officially opened by President by June this year.
The construction of access roads is also high on the agenda.
“At the moment, everything is in place and we are expecting the FIB to come and inspect the stadium for Premiership use this week,” said Magaya.
“We are very confident that the stadium will pass the inspection. When we were constructing this venue, we were always in consultation with the relevant experts who guided us on what to do and what not to do.
“We are very thankful to them all, including the Government of Zimbabwe. So we are saying if the stadium passes the evaluation by the FIB, we will then start our expansion works without compromising the quality of what would have been inspected.
“We want to increase the seating capacity of the venue to 10 000 by June and eventually to 20 000. The idea is to try and make the
Mnangagwa late last year and could bring relief to some Harare teams that have been facing stadium crisis. With the National Sports Stadium doubtful for the first few games of the season, The Heart Stadium could bring relief to the PSL. Yadah chairman Everson Chatambudza is excited by the benefits expected from the investment that was sunk into the project.
“I think our stadium is in good condition. We are expecting the inspectors any time soon and we are ready for kick-off,” said Chatambudza. The Premier Soccer League is keeping its fingers crossed that more stadiums will be homologated this year to ease the crisis that haunted domestic football in the last two years.
The other stadiums that could be used for Premiership football this year include Nyamhunga, Mandava, Colliery, Green Fuel Arena, Barbourfields, Bata, Luveve, Baobab, and the National Sports Stadium, which is currently undergoing major renovations to stadium available for national team(s) use.
“At the moment, we are just waiting for the FIB who will also give us further guidance on what to do to start the expansion works on the stadium.
“Like what I said when we were still constructing this stadium, this ground is not for Yadah Stars alone. It is not even mine. It belongs to the people of Zimbabwe and football. So we want to make it available for huge-crowd attractions like when the national team is playing.”
Zimbabwe play their next home game against Lesotho on June 3.
With the National Sports Stadium also expected to be available by then, the Heart Stadium could as well be of huge help to Dynamos and Ngezi Platinum Stars.
The latter will represent the country in the CAF Champions League while the former will participate in the CAF Con-federation Cup.
get CAF and FIFA certification. Minister of Sport, Arts, Recreation and Culture Kirsty Coventry said the Government was grateful to private players who have been investing in sports facilities of late.
“We can’t do anything without the private sector,” she said during her tour of the Geo Pomona recreational facilities.
“We know that government is trying to stretch the budget as much as possible, but we need the private players and we are thankful for these private players to be leading the way and showing that sport plays a huge part in our communities and our everyday lives.
“To have facilities that will be open to the public to come in and make use of is, I want to say, a big thank you from my Ministry and the government because we can’t do it by ourselves. “We need that buy-in from the corporates and the private sector . . . we will be open to any investments of that kind.”
POLOKWANE City forward, Douglas Mapfumo has revealed the message behind his goal celebration at Richards Bay on Saturday.
Mapfumo opened the scoring but sadly, the Rise and Shine were at the receiving end in a five-goal thriller.
That was the end of the road in the first round of the Nedbank Cup for Rise and Shine.
This was the Zimbabwean forward’s fourth goal of the season, and he had struggled for goals despite enjoying a promising start. Zimbabwean players are now a rare commodity in Mzansi’s top-flight.
The 23-year-old is the youngest Zimbabwean player who is currently raising the flag sky high.
He had last recorded in September last year before suffering a dreadful injury that kept him on the sidelines for nearly two months.
Their weekend’s loss against Richards Bay was deemed bigger than any fixture in Mzansi by the team’s chairman, Johnny Magaladi.
He made a bet with the players that if they had eliminated Richards Bay from the knock-out competition, he was going to travel to Johannesburg by road.
Mapfumo said that’s the reason he whistled with his teammates, pointing at the VIP section where Magaladi was sitting when he grabbed the opener.
“Our chairman doesn’t want to travel by road, and he promised us many things if we had gotten the better of our opponents.
“But the condition we liked the most was witnessing him traveling back to Joburg by road because he is always flying.
“And it is unfortunate that we will have to wait for another day. Everyone was disappointed with the loss, we wanted to progress to the next round, but it wasn’t our day,” said Mapfumo.
Rise and Shine is hosting Orlando Pirates this Saturday.
Polokwane City are sitting eighth on the DStv Premiership table, and they are just two points behind the Buccaneers.
The Legends Academy graduate is hoping to extend his scoring run.
Mapfumo also feels they are still in the woods.
“I was becoming worried because I was doing everything, but the goals were not coming, and I think last weekend’s goal was the icebreaker.
“I think the confidence is back, and playing against Pirates gives you the drive to showcase your ability.
“It’s going to be a big game for us because our priority is to survive relegation, and it feels good that we are at the top end of the table, and we are going to do everything to remain focused,” he said.