The ManicaPost
Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
EFFORTS to spread the game of rugby to rural as well as high-density areas of Manicaland continue being evident on the ground after the formation of a new club from the heart of Sakubva, Spartans Rugby Club.
Sahumani Girls Club at Sahumani Secondary School deep in the thickets of Honde Valley is another example of a viable project that has been born out of the Manicaland Rugby Board’s initiative to spread the game to areas that once perceived the sport as elitist.
Deon Tinashe Gombakomba, a teacher by profession who is a former rugby player and captain at Mutare Teachers’ College, teamed up with his college mates, Benice Casper Mugaduyi, a Manicaland rugby referee and also a player at Mutare Sport Club, to form Spartans.
Gombakomba is the club’s team manager as well as fitness trainer, while Mugaduyi is head coach.
The club is using Mutanda Primary School in Sakubva as their training ground.
Gombakomba said: “Our vision is to promote the game of rugby and identify young talented players so that we encourage them to go further in their careers.
“We are all aware of the perception attached to Sakubva. All the stigma associated with drugs, violence and alcohol abuse, but we are determined to play our part in transforming that.
“It is also important for us to change the perception that Sakubva is all about football. We know we have talented rugby players in Sakubva, hence we have no doubt that with the passage of time people will start appreciating our efforts.”
Gombakomba said they are looking for sponsors.
“We are still hunting for sponsors because we do not have enough in terms of resources to use to fulfil this dream. Currently, we are working with Ngoni Chibuwe and FACT. However, we are genuinely appealing to prospective partners to come in and ensure we develop Sakubva through sport. In the same breadth, we heartily thank Manicaland Rugby Board for the help they have given us so far,” he said.
He added that their long term vision is to turn the club as a hub of the sport of rugby for not only Sakubva and Mutare, but the entire nation and beyond.
Their short term vision is to get more players joining from primary to tertiary education levels and also members of the community coming up to join the club management and support.
