EIGHTEEN-year-old England-based striker Macauley Bonne has issued a come-and-get-me plea to Warriors coach Ian Gorowa.
BY MICHAEL MADYIRA
A fully-fledged professional in his debut League One season with Colchester United, Bonne qualifies to represent Zimbabwe courtesy of his Zimbabwean parentage.
The Ipswich-born teenager has scored three goals in 14 appearances for Colchester who ply their trade in a league which is two tiers below the English Premiership.
A fairytale week last October in which he made his debut away at Shrewsbury before scoring four days later at home, Bonne announced his arrival in the league.
He headed in a game-clinching goal in his home debut against Peterborough on his 18th birthday, in a match Sir Alex Ferguson was part of the crowd watching the game.
Having established himself at club level, becoming a full international is Bonne’s next goal with the player also eligible to play for England.
But Zimbabwe has quickly come into his mind.
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“I am with the club (Colchester) at the moment as I am in the first team. But from that I can tell you know I would like to play for Zimbabwe,” Bonne told Standardsport.
The Warriors currently boast of what looks like a powerful strike force, an attack that satisfies any coach and good enough to upset continental powerhouses.
Spearheaded by Knowledge Musona, the attack also includes Nyasha Mushekwi, Quincy Antipas, Edward Sadomba, Tendai Ndoro, Kingstone Nkatha and Cuthbert Malajila.
But for a teenager like Bonne to establish himself in a league better than the South African Premier Soccer League, Gorowa’s arsenal upfront is now richer.
Nicknamed Macca, Bonne might not have built up on his promising goal-scoring prowess showcased in his early League One matches, but Colchester manager Joe Dunne sees immense potential in the player.
“Against Peterborough, Macca scored, Sammie (Szmodics) was on, and Alex (Gilbey) has been playing regularly, in three or four different positions,” Dunne told the East Anglian Daily Times.
“That is the future of the club, and there’s one or two more (youngsters) to come in as well. So it is not just for show, it is real! It is good and it is exciting. They are quality players, not just poly-fillers! And they are ours. They are home grown and we should be delighted.”
Bonne started his career as an eight-year-old at Ipswich Town followed by a brief stop at Norwich City before finally landing at Colchester in 2009 where he has shot up from youth ranks to the first team.
