The ManicaPost
Fungayi Munyoro Sports Correspondent
MUTARE Boys High School (MBHS) will no longer be taking part in this year’s Dairibord Schools Rugby Festival, the sports director has confirmed.
Dairibord Schools Rugby Festival is running from April 28 to May 4.
Prince Edward School will be the hosts.
In an exclusive interview with Post Sport, Mutare Boys High School, sports director Kuda Dube expressed his concern and reasons for not participating in the festival.
“We held a meeting as a school and concluded that we will no longer be taking part in this year’s edition. We had a budget of $8 000 and as a school we failed to raise that large amount of money. We have always participated in the festival but this time around we are not going,” he said.
Manicaland Rugby Board ( MRB ) chairman Josiah Borerwe said MBHS’s withdrawal is a loss for the province.
“As Manicaland Rugby Board , we have learnt with great shock that MBHS is no longer attending the famous Dairy Board Festival, which is very important on our rugby calendar in Zimbabwe. Besides rugby, it gives students an opportunity to mix and mingle with other students from Zimbabwe and SADC region. All our efforts to develop rugby are dented because MBHS is a corridor of rugby development for MSC. About 70 percent of Mutare Sports Club players are from MBHS.
“We will try to engage the authorities. To the kid, it has a serious negative impact since they have been practicing in anticipation of the event. Some can even change to other sport codes due to frustration, as a board, we are so worried and concerned since a lot of upcoming schools in rugby space look up to MBHS,” said Borerwe.
The Dairibord Zimbabwe Rugby Festival, formerly Cottco Rugby Festival is one of the biggest schools rugby festivals in Zimbabwe.
Over the years, the festival has grown to become one of the biggest rugby tournaments in the world, attracting participants from the Southern African region and beyond. The festival has identified and nurtured talent and has produced stars such as Tendai Mtawarira who plays for the South African national team.
