The ManicaPost
. . . will Gem Boys shine or Tenax roar as Mutare Derby explodes?
Ray Bande and Moffat Mungazi
FEEL it, it is here!
The debut instalment of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League’s Mutare Derby is finally here.
Forget the Harare Derby between the capital city’s two biggest teams — Dynamos and CAPS United — which is on this weekend, for all football eyes in Manicaland will be on the Mutare Derby as cross-town rivals, Manica Diamonds and Tenax square off at Sakubva Stadium on Sunday.
All football roads in the province, therefore, lead to the popular venue for the historic match that is expected to attract a full house.
Interestingly, the two teams are coming into the encounter on the back of contrasting fortunes.
Clearly, they are both struggling for good form and positive results.
The Gem Boys have mustered a single a victory, as many losses and three draws in their previous five matches.
Commendably, they have kept four clean sheets and were only breached once in the 1-0 reverse at Dynamos.
It is their attack, instead, that has fired blanks in four of those matches; scoring just once as they overpowered ZPC Kariba at home.
On the other hand, Chauya Chikara’s rearguard has posed serious headaches for them as they have been leaking like wet diapers. Managing one win, a draw and three defeats in their last five games, they have conceded 11 goals and scored five.
Last weekend’s1-0 victory over Cranborne Bullets was their only shutout in the period under review.
With all the ingredients of a potentially explosive local derby in place, Sunday’s match will be much more than the three points at stake as the bragging rights are also there to fight for.
No wonder, Tenax C.S FC coach, Shadreck ‘Father’ Mugurasave reckons this will not to be an easy match for both teams.
“It is a big game for both teams. We are preparing as usual. We don’t change our normal programme for the sake of certain teams. We only adjust our formation basing on how our opponents play.
“I am expecting a good performance from both teams. The better team of the day will walk away with three points. What I can guarantee is that it will be an entertaining encounter,” said the former Buffaloes defender.
Much as Mugurasave would want to get the three points at all costs, it will be Manica Diamonds gaffer, Johanisi Nhumwa who will probably come into the tie with a heavier burden on his shoulders.
Nhumwa is facing unpredictable Tenax C.S FC at a time when an axe is hanging on his head as the club’s leadership is set to sit down for a review of his contract after the team’s league encounter following a streak of poor results, worsened by the one-all home stalemate against Black Rhinos recently.
Nhumwa is also convinced that his team needs the three points against Tenax C.S FC.
“In terms of the performance of the team, I think we just to have to win this one. We have come a long way and we have proved to be a hard team to beat.
“We are expecting a good game and a very good turnout. If people remember the ambitions I talked about at the start of the season, it was that we want to attain top four and if we are to go all the way to win the championship it will be bonus for us,” said the former Masvingo United coach.
Nhumwa is not really disturbed by the absence of top strikers, Farai Mugumwa and Nyasha Chintuli.
“When the two players joined Manica Diamonds from Tenax, there was a clause in the players’ contracts that they would not feature in a match against their former club.
“Even in our most recent match, Mugumwa was not part of the team as he was attending to some family issues. It is business as usual. We have adequate replacements for that,” said Nhumwa.
Mugumwa and Chintuli moved to cross-town rivals, Manica Diamonds at the beginning of this year when league action resumed and the two have scored a total of six goals since they started donning the white and gold stripe.
Mugumwa has scored only once after featuring for Manica Diamonds in a total of 11 matches, coming in the starting line up six times and as a substitute on five occasions.
Chintuli hit the nets five times since joining Manica Diamonds in the nine matches he has been on the team sheet.
With the usually reliable striker, Lloyd Katongomara out on suspension this weekend after accruing three yellow cards, the Gem Boys, whose strike-force has been their Achilles Heel in recent matches, will be counting on their long serving strikers, Michael Tapera and Charles Teguru for goals.
When the two teams last clashed during the Chibuku Super Cup competition last year, Tenax C.S FC beat Manica Diamonds 2-1 before the two teams settled for a two-all stalemate in a four goal thriller in the reverse fixture at Sakubva Stadium.
Both teams did not progress to the next stage of the competition.
Meanwhile, Manica Diamonds chairman Masimba Chihowa has said they have not hiked gate charges in a bid to attract a huge turnout for Sunday’s historic match.
