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Sarupinda: The man of many firsts

30 Oct, 2015 - 00:10 0 Views

The ManicaPost

Sports Correspondent
In the turbulent world of movers and shakers, Obadiah Tauraineni Sarupinda moved and shook what he could. His outstanding performances as player, coach, administrator and advisor contributed immensely to his own life and to the sport he virtually lived for. By the time he passed on in December 1993, he had become arguably one of Zimbabwean football’s most towering figures, both metaphorically and physically.

Obadiah Sarupinda was born to Nyanyiwa Silas Sarupinda and Margret Sarupinda (Nee Mashiri). He was born in the Rupinda area under Chief Muponda. Prior to British colonial rule, the Muponda Kingdom covered most of the present day Honde Valley, all the way to the present day city of Mutare.

Obie, as he was affectionately known, grew up under a African traditional setting at a time the British Colonial government was going about setting up social, political and economic systems that would also go a long way toward influencing Obadiah’s adult life. During Obie’s early life, his father Nyanyiwa worked at Stapleford Estate (KwaMunere), near present day Penhalonga, as a Forestry Supervisor. In those early years Obie and his siblings were raised by their mother and grandmother (Mbuya Musone).

There are no prizes for guessing the source of Obie’s leadership and charisma. Obie was a descendent of the first Mambo Muponda who controlled most of the northern parts of the present day Eastern Highlands. Mambo Muponda is acclaimed by most prominent historians to be the first Bantu ruler to settle and reign over the Eastern Highlands. Mambo Muponda’s headquarters was close to Ruinji Mountain. Obie’s great grandfather, Goramutsipa, was one of Muponda’s sons who included Maringa, Nemaunga, Chauruka, Ruwaka, Mutetwa and Nhunhama. The area was referred to as Dowe (perennially wet area) from where Obie and his Nyere clan derived their clan name “VaDowe”. Obie’s mother was a descendent of Mambo Saunyama of the Mheta clan that ruled over present day Nyanga. Thus Obie, had royal blood flowing in his veins. His father was installed as Ishe (Sub-Chief) Sarupinda in 1938. As a young boy, Obie did not allow his father’s powerful position to affect him. Obie’s mother, an ardent Christian, weighed in with invaluable guidance to her children by emphasizing the values and principles from both African tradition and Christian teachings.

Growing up in the mountainous Rupinda area, Obadiah and other boys were naturally able to develop their physique from jogging or walking up and down the steep and rugged slopes that dominate the terrain of Eastern Highlands. The environment naturally provided high altitude training for the man who became a tower of strength on the soccer field.

Occasionally, Obie together with his brothers and cousins would be sent on errands to Mambo Muponda at Ruinji Mountain, or the Maringas, Nemaungas, Ruwakas and the Nhunhamas, all close relatives who were spread around the highlands. There was hardly any infrastructure to talk about and this meant that Obie and other boys walked or jogged to and from these distant places. Little did Obie know that these errands were preparing him mentally and physically for future battles on the soccer fields dotted around Southern Africa?

When Obie first kicked a proper ball at Rupinda School, having previously kicked other objects around the village and grazing areas, he never dreamt of reaching the levels he later attained in life. He and his fellow village boys could not afford a proper ball. They made balls using bark from the wild banana plant (Matsororo). Parents would often get mad at the boys as at times they got engrossed in their soccer matches while the cattle and goats they were herding went astray.

In 1938, as Hitler was finalizing his futile plans to conquer the world, Obie enrolled at Rupinda School for his first grade. Obie spent his formative years at the school. In 1947, Obie left the comfort of the family home for the first time and trekked on foot to Old Mutare Mission to further his academic and football education. During his stay at Old Mutare Mission, Obie’s one yearn was soccer. He developed a love and passion for the game, which Pele later described in three words as: O jogo bonito (the beautiful game). His brother Josphat joined him at Old Mutare in 1948.

Obie and Josphat became the heartbeat of an all-conquering Old Mutare team from 1948 to 1950. Obie played as a centre back while Josphat weighed in as wing-half (midfielder). Legend has it that some teams would ask the Old Mutare coach not to field Obie and his brother in the same team in order to have more balanced games. They lost only a few of the matches in which they featured together. Those who watched the games had memories of the left-footed Josphat scoring many goals straight from the corner. Legend has it that had Josphat not passed on in his early twenties, he could have developed into arguably one of the best attacking midfielders ever produced in Zimbabwe.

In January 1951, Obie returned to his home area and was engaged as a teacher at Rupinda Primary School. Tragedy struck Ishe Sarupinda’s family in 1952, when Josphat who had also taken up a teaching position at Kosten Primary School in Rupinda area died as a result of suspected food poisoning. The loss of a beloved brother stung and shocked Obie. The family disaster made the determined Obie set his sights higher. He informed his parents that the only way he could overcome the setback was to move away from home for some time.

In December 1952, Obie resigned from his teaching position and decided to join the great trek to Harare, then Salisbury. On 7 January 1953, Obie set foot in Harare for the first time after a journey by train from Mutare. He joined the Rhodesia Herald as a clerk and he also doubled as a player for the company’s football team that was playing in the second division. He became an automatic starter and helped the team gain promotion to Division 1 at the end of that season. This marked the beginning of Obie’s career as a professional footballer.

Obie left the Herald football team at the end of 1954 and joined the Salisbury based Old Mutare F.C. for which he turned up in 1955 and 1956. It was during that period that he attracted the attention of the Yellow Peril selectors. It was a select side of the best players from Salisbury. The select sides from all cities from Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia) and Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) used to play in a knock out tournament, the Castle Cup. Only the best were selected to play in the select sides.

In the Yellow Peril team, Obie played with the one armed Freddy “Dusty King” Gotora, arguably one of the best dribblers to emerge from Zimbabwe. The other players that teamed up with Obie and Dusty King were Barnes Chiwareware, Josiah Akende, John Jappi, Danny “Bricks” Thomas Yaledi and Samson Bhinya among others. With Yellow Peril, Obie added to his winners’ medals, when the select side beat a Zambian Select side 3-2 in the 1956 finals. During the same year, Yellow Peril toured South Africa and won all their matches.

Within five years of setting foot in the capital, Obie became a household name for his prowess on the football pitch. The physique he had built in his days of herding cattle and running errands in the Eastern Highlands made him a force to reckon with on the soccer pitches of Salisbury. His outstanding performances gained him a number of nicknames, which reflected his indomitable spirit on the soccer pitch.

He was nicknamed Mutikiti Watambarara (directly translated to the pumpkin plant is flourishing) for his ability to cover every inch of the football field in the manner the plant spreads itself on the fields in summer. His height and strength earned the nickname Mapuranga as he towered over most of the opponents. His crunching tackles earned the nickname Nyamusenga (the terror man). Anyone who was tackled by Obie would testify that the man was as hard as teak. He was also nicknamed Ford V8, a powerful and fashionable car at the time, for his endurance and elegant play.

In 1958, Obie formed his own team, the Eastern Brothers, in which he was trainer and captain. The team was competitive against some of the teams in the Salisbury League that included Mutambara, Mhondoro, Red Lion, Mashonaland, Civil Service, Harari, BSAP and Old Mutare.

In September 1958, Obie married Elizabeth Irene Shupikai Dangare. There was a big wedding bash at Ishe Sarupinda’s homestead. Thousands of guests turned up for the occasion. Obie and his wife were blessed with a daughter a year later. They went on to add two more girls and a boy. As soccer took Obie across the African continent, South America and Europe, Elizabeth was the keeper of the children and the keeper of Obie’s dreams.

To be continued……………..

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