‘The rock’ back in the spotlight

Sport
In Greek mythology, the Rock of Gibraltar was one of the two Pillars of Hercules that marked the limit to the known world.

In Greek mythology, the Rock of Gibraltar was one of the two Pillars of Hercules that marked the limit to the known world.

yesteryear profile MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE

Ephraim Chawanda
Ephraim Chawanda

Presently, when something is likened to The Rock of Gibraltar, it means it is very strong and cannot be penetrated or destroyed.

Zimbabwe football once had such a rock that defended the honour of the country and that of a local football club — Zimbabwe Saints.

when Zimbabwe Saints conquered all in 1988, “the rock” etched an indelible mark in local football and emerged the finest footballer in the land.

Last week, the rock — Ephraim Chawanda (52) — was back in the public glare as guest of honour at the glamorous Castle Lager Premier League (PSL) Soccer Stars Awards banquet in Harare.

“I’m humbled. I wasn’t expecting such an honour to be bestowed on me, but I appreciate and I would like to thank PSL for this. I will remind you that I never played under PSL but they have seen it fit to bestow honour on a former footballer,” he told Standardsport.

“I am not here to represent myself only, but to represent a horde of former players from my era. They [PSL] have made my year, this is a good closing to 2016 for me,” the football legend added.

Still carrying himself with humility and grace, the skipper of the famed Dream Team was indeed a surprise guest at the awards, which had a lot of former players in attendance.

Since his unceremonious retirement from the Warriors colours back in 1995, Chawanda seems to have shied away from Zimbabwe football.

He opened up to Standardsport on what transpired back then leading to his premature retirement from the beloved Warriors.

“This is the very first time I am talking about this in public. The then administrator Lazarus Mhurushomana called me for camp but told me that he only had five air tickets. there were not enough tickets for all foreign-based players.

“I then volunteered to drive from South Africa so that Europe-based players could fly. So when I got here they wanted to fire me as captain, saying I had come to camp late and therefore it was indiscipline.

“I did not agree with that because I had always been a disciplined player, so I told them if that was the case, I would rather not be part of the national team. I remember the team went on to lose 2-1 away to Swaziland and that’s the last time I was involved with the national team,” the 1988 Soccer Star of the Year said.

However, Chawanda does not regret walking out on the team that he had served with distinction for a little over a decade, the greater part of it as captain.

“No regret at all, but it’s just unfortunate when the administration does not put thought to some of the decisions they make. Sometimes the team loses because of an incorrect decision by administration.

“The Dream team failed to qualify for the World Cup and Africa Cup of Nations simply because Leo Mugabe imposed Gibson Homela into the technical team against Reinhardt Fabisch’s good judgement. I hope the current leadership will not do it to Kalisto Pasuwa as he prepares for the Gabon Afcon,” Chawanda said.

By the time he retired from football as player-coach at the now defunct Mutare United in 1997, Chawanda already had a Uefa B Licence.

He pursued coaching during his six years in Germany, playing for Bonner FC and Cologne in Bundesliga 2.

Since he retired, the former Warriors defense stalwart has been assistant coach at Zimbabwe saints and has assisted clubs in Botswana. He also spent seven years in Nelspruit, South Africa working with junior football teams in the Vodacom league.

Some of the teams he has helped get promotion to the SA First Division League include FC Sporting and Mbombela United.

“But deep down in my heart, I wish, and I hope this is a start, that here in Zimbabwe we can also be able to plough back into the development of the sport,” he said.

Chawanda’s career began in the railway community of Matshobane in the 1970s where he played for Bulawayo Black Aces before moving to Queens FC as a junior.

After excelling in football at Mpopoma High School where he was a striker and was voted the best player at the school, Chawanda was bound to join the army at Llewellyn Barracks as a 17-year-old in 1981.

One of the teachers, a staunch Highlanders supporter, rescued him by taking him for trials at the Bulawayo giants.

“Unfortunately, the Highlanders coach was too busy on that day so he didn’t have a chance to look at me. When I told my father about the Highlanders ordeal, he then forced me to go to Zimbabwe Saints, the team he supported, and that’s how I ended up there,” he said.

At just about the same time, he was also offered a job as a police officer in Harare and a chance to play for Tornadoes.

At “Chauya Chikwata”, as Zimbabwe Saints is affectionately known, the then teenage defender linked up with veterans such as Gibson Homela, Max Shaluza, Shaky Nyathi and Godfrey Paradza, among others.

Chawanda soon established himself as a top defender in the country, making his debut for the national team against Malawi in 1985.

Ghanaian coach Ben Koffie elevated him to the captaincy a couple of years later.

“I am a unifier. I have always had this ability to unify people and to be honest, I am a Shona guy born and bred in Bulawayo. My strength shone through during the Fabisch era when I could unify players from the north and from the south,” Chawanda said.

His best year remains the year he won the league title with Zimbabwe Saints in 1988, which also signalled the end of his flirtation with local football as he moved to Germany the following season.

Having lost interest in coaching, Chawanda is keen on taking a different route from most of his peers.

“We are in the process of establishing an organisation that looks at player development for current players to help them prepare for life after their careers end. We are in the process of setting up office in Harare,” Chawanda revealed.

The former soccer star, who contends that Zimbabwe has the best talent in the southern African region, emphasised the need for the Warriors to prepare well ahead of their third appearance at Afcon in Gabon next month.

Playing mostly as a sweeper, he singled out Gift Mpariwa and Henry Chari as the most difficult opponents he faced.

Chawanda was solid at the back such that the late famous local football commentator Evans Mambara likened him to the Rock of Gibraltar. In short, they called him Rocky.