The Young Warriors will this afternoon attempt to invoke the spirit of Yaoundé when they collide with Swaziland in a crucial African Under-23 Championship qualifier, second round, return leg at Somhlolo.
BY MICHAEL MADYIRA
Zimbabwe finally left for Swaziland yesterday morning after the trip had been doubtful as Zifa struggled to secure air tickets for the travelling party.
With the first leg having ended 0-0 at Rufaro seven days ago, Kalisto Pasuwa’s side would be seeking to reproduce heroic exploits of April 12 when they held Cameroon 1-1 in Yaoundé to qualify for Septembers’ All-Africa Games.
With the odds staked against Zimbabwe, Pasuwa’s boys defied questionable officiating to stun a Cameroon side that included players who turn out for European giants Barcelona and Ajax Amsterdam.
But Swaziland’s spirited display last week is enough caution that the regional neighbours can upset the Young Warriors in the same fashion they did to Cameroon.
“I have been telling the boys that we have a big job at hand,” said Pasuwa.
“If we managed to sail past a powerhouse like Cameroon, what can make Swaziland fail to upset us? But we have been looking at the positive. Instead, we have this mentality that if Swaziland managed to hold us at home, what can prevent us from at least managing a draw or even a win? I believe we will return home with a positive result.”
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
The winner of this stage will meet South Africa in the third and final round of qualification for the tournament to be staged in Senegal in December.
For Young Warriors captain Wisdom Mutasa and some of his teammates, they will not only be drawing inspiration from the Yaoundé conquest, but also from the Somhlolo turf where they humbled the Swaziland senior side 2-0 last October in an international friendly match.
Returning to Mbabane, the likes of then skipper Ronald Pfumbidzai, goalkeeper Donovan Bernard, Carlos Rusere, Blessing Moyo, Nqobizitha Masuku and Emmanuel Mandiranga are familiar with Somhlolo where Mutasa grabbed one of Zimbabwe’s goals.
Mutasa is leading a side that has however lost two international friendlies on the road, a 1-0 loss to Botswana and a 2-1 defeat to a full-strength Morocco last November in a contest Zimbabwe threw everything at the North Africans.
But a fight at Somhlolo that does not yield a positive result will spell doom for Zimbabwe.
“We just need the spirit we had in Cameroon as well as Morocco,” said Mutasa.
“With that kind of fighting spirit, we will not go wrong. We have been to Swaziland before and we won there so we know what to expect. They played well when they visited us but we can do better, just like what we did when we beat their senior team.”
The Young Warriors yesterday left behind wingbacks Edwin Madhanhanga and Munyaradzi Diro-Nyenye who participated in the first leg.
Tinovimba Muskwe, Livingstone Genti and Takabva Mawaya also did not make the trip after sitting on the bench in the reverse fixture.
After the first leg, Swaziland coach Caleb Ngwenya promised to dump the defensive approach they employed in Harare.
“We came here to defend and it worked well. We are going to open a bit and attack more in the second leg. I will also include players like Xavi [Mthunzi Mkhonthfo] and Njabulo Ndlovu who are with the senior side at the Cosafa Cup,” said Ngwenya.
