Just like the biblical David who challenged Goliath in the name of his God, high-flying Premier Soccer League (PSL) debutants Yadah FC say they are undaunted by Dynamos’ reputation since they play for the god of their prophet and technical director, Walter Magaya.
BY MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE
Unbeaten so far in the league, Yadah FC occupies fourth position after five matches going into the weekend fixture and face their biggest test to-date against the most successful club in Zimbabwe football at the National Sports Stadium this afternoon.
While many had dismissed Yadah FC’s early season form as fluke, opinion swayed when they beat log leaders Ngezi Platinum Stars last weekend.
“We play for the god of our prophet [Magaya] and I don’t think we will be overwhelmed by the name Dynamos, as well as its reputation,” Yadah FC coach Jairos Tapera told Standardsport.
“We are just going to be Yadah playing the Yadah way. We are here to compete and it’s not a fluke that we are here. We are well-supported by our prophet, he is our father, our provider, the one that makes us tick and when we win, we say thank you to him.
“We ask him for help all the time because we are limited physically. And at that level, my boys are ready; we cannot afford to go against a team like Dynamos unprepared,” he added.
The Magaya-owned side plunged into their debut season in the PSL virtually as unknowns and looked nothing more than relegation candidates.
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But it is the manner in which they have been winning points that suggests a divine hand is at play in their matches.
In their nil-all draw season opener against Harare City, they had the crossbar to thank, keeping out defender Brian Chikwenya’s headed clearance while a hotly-contested miracle goal gave them their first ever top-flight victory over ZPC Kariba in week three.
Last week they won a match they had no right winning, clinging onto a one goal lead for 76 minutes, with goalkeeper Tafadzwa Dube making jaw-dropping saves. That was followed by a one-all draw to Chapungu midweek, where Maxwell Mavhuto missed a penalty for the hosts.
On the other hand, Dynamos are in 13th place on the log standings following a deplorable home defeat to How Mine on Thursday.
Lloyd Mutasa’s charges failed to hold it together in the absence of injured senior players in the form of Ocean Mushure, Masimba Mambare, Gift Saunyama and Denver Mukamba.
The under-fire Mutasa admitted that his team needed to improve to keep pace with other teams.
“We need to pull-up our socks to bounce back into contention. At Dynamos, every team that you play gives 140% effort. So it’s not a matter of playing Yadah but we really know a small team can give 150% and we need to be ready all the time,” he said.
A win for Yadah today will all but establish the newcomers as a force to reckon with this season.
It’s also a chance for some of their stars namely Leeroy Mavhunga, Arial Makopa and Leroy Murape to prove their mettle.
In the other big game of the week, Highlanders welcome back Eric Mudzingwa as they host log leaders Ngezi Platinum Stars at Barbourfields Stadium.
