The Standard (Zimbabwe)

Govt extinguish­es Warriors’ Afcon dream

- BY MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE BY MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE (pictured)

THE Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) has emphatical­ly declared the country’s participat­ion in the 2023 Afcon qualifiers is not a priority as the window of opportunit­y opened by Caf slams shut this week.

Zimbabwe is currently serving a Fifa ban, which was imposed in February for what the internatio­nal football body termed third party interferen­ce by the government in the running of the game in the country.

This was after the SRC, a body that reports to Sports minister Kirsty Coventry, had swooped into the affairs of local football in a bid to clean up the mess. They suspended the Zimbabwe Football Associatio­n (Zifa) board led by Felton Kamambo in November last year over a litany of charges include gross incompeten­ce, failure to account for public funds and sexual abuse of fe-female referees.

In spite of the ban, which effectivel­y barred the country from participat­ing in internatio­nal and regional events, Caf allowed Zimbabwe to enter the draw for the 2023 Afcon qualifi

THERE has been a shocking turn of events at the title chasing Harare giants Dynamos after they reached a decision to suspend head coach Tonderai Ndiraya

yesterday.

The developmen­t came barely a week after Ndiraya’s high-riding Dynamos lost top spot to Chicken Inn in the race for the championsh­ips after unruly behaviour by the team's fans caused the abandonmen­t of their high pro le clash with arch-rivals Highlander­s at Barbour elds Stadium.

Dynamos were trailing by one goal to nil when the match was abandoned after its fans invaded the pitch.

But it is di cult to attach Ndiraya’s startling suspension to the teams’ performanc­e and failure to get maximum points in Bulawayo last week with the ers, which are scheduled to start on June 1.

But Caf set conditions that Zimbabwe needed to meet for the Fifa ban to be lifted. The conditions included the unconditio­nal reinstate- ment of Kamambo and his board at least two weeks before the first qualifying match.

The Warriors were drawn in Group K alongside neighbours South Africa, Liberia and Morocco, in Group K, and were set to begin their campaign at home against the Lone Star on June 9.

It means the ultimatum expires on Thursday this week and the country is waiting with baited breath to see if the SRC is goinging to budge.

“Let me be brutally clear about this, Afcon qualifiers are not a priority or a decision for the SRC right now. It’s as simple as that,” SRC board chairman Gerald Mlotshwa told The Standardsp­ort. Mlotshwa’s comment came after last week’s reports suggested that the SRC was angling to file an appeal with the Court of Arbitratio­n for Sport (CAS) against Fifa’s decision to ban Zimbabwe from internatio­nal competitio­ns, paving the way for the senior football team

SRC board chairman Gerald Mlotshwa

to participat­e in the Afcon qualifiers.

However, the SRC chairman expressed shock at the reports. club opting to be mum on the reason for the decision.

“We write to advise all stakeholde­rs that our head coach Tonderai Ndiraya has been temporaril­y asked not to report for duty with immediate e ect pursuant to a meeting that was held on 21 May 2022.

“The club is not in a position to discuss the details of this developmen­t until the internal due process is nalised,” read the statement released by the club yesterday evening.

Following the disturbanc­es at Barbour elds Stadium seven days ago the Premier Soccer League (PSL) decided to cancel all week 16 matches to hold an indaba with football stakeholde­rs on what needs to be done to stem the increasing incidences of rowdy behaviour by the fans at stadia.

And the Dynamos leadership took

“We don’t have a locus standi as SRC to approach CAS - why do you guys just write stories without at the very least asking SRC to the opportunit­y to sanction their head coach, who has been impressive for the club so far this season.

The Harare giants currently sit second on the PSL log standings with 30 points from 15 matches, one behind pacesetter­s Chicken Inn and the club boasts of the meanest defence in the league having leaked just six goals so far.

For the better part of the season everything looked rosy for the Glamour Boys, who are bankrolled by energy giant Sakunda Holdings until reports emerged ahead of the Bosso tie that the club owed players winning bonuses in excess US$1000.

Reports also suggested that the Dynamos executive attempted to withhold players’ bonuses from the government for the team’s participat­ion in the Independen­ce Cup nal where they lost 1-0 to Bosso.

WARRIORS’ mid elder Marshall Munetsi has been rewarded by his French Ligue 1 side Stade de Reims with a two year contract extension which will keep him at the club until 2026 following an impressive season. Munetsi joined Reims from South African giants Orlando Pirates in a reported €550 000 deal back in 2019 and his initial contract was set to expire in June 2023, but earned an improved one year extension barely a year later. comment? It’s a great disservice to the journalist profession,” he said.

The Zifa secretaria­t is understood to have already started preparatio­ns for the home match against Liberia, which is likely to be played in another country since local stadia are banned from hosting internatio­nal events.

It is also understood that Zifa is desperate for the SRC to lift the ban on the associatio­n since the electoral college revoked Kamambo’s mandate and that of two other board members at an emergency meeting held in Harare last month.

The SRC has remained headstrong in its quest to clean up football and made clear its intentions by appointing a nine-member Zifa restructur­ing committee as part of its strategic roadmap towards addressing issues affecting domestic football management and administra­tion last December.

Mlotshwa has been on record arguing that the country needs to take a step back from internatio­nal engagement­s to allow for time to rebuild and refocus.

The ZIfa restructur­ing committee appealed for support and cooperatio­n from local football fans and other stakeholde­rs when it got down to business in March by holding consultati­ve meetings with football stakeholde­rs.

But it has since gone quiet in recent months.

It is understood that Dynamos received $4,5 million for nishing as runners-up and players had to demand for their share of the prize money.

Interestin­gly the reports credited Ndiraya for managing to keep the players playing in spite of the low morale in the Dynamos camp and the coach’s suspension could be linked to those events.

A video of a small group of Dynamos fans clamouring for Ndiraya’s dismissal following the 1 –

1 draw against Bulawayo

City a fortnight ago made rounds.

However, the suspension of Ndiraya could ultimately derail Dynamos’ title chase.

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