The violence that rocked Maglas Stadium on that sunny Sunday afternoon is one of the many sad scenes that have taken place in football this season and probably not the last.
Events on the ground suggest that Zimbabwean football has failed to stamp out hooliganism as more and more acts of violence continue to dominate the game, and with no solution in sight for that matter.
Heavy fines have been imposed on clubs but these have not helped in any way as clubs do not have control over the behaviour of their fans, especially those who attend matches after taking one or two beers.
There was chaos at Barbourfields Stadium on May 12 which led to the abandonment of the match between Highlanders and Dynamos. Two weeks later, there was mayhem at Mandava Stadium during the game between FC Platinum and Highlanders.
Only four weeks ago, Shabanie Mine coach, Takesure Chiragwi, was man-handled by a group of the team’s followers who were unhappy with their team’s performance as the miners sank into the relegation zone.
Although these were high profile cases for which action should have been taken, what we only know is that Highlanders were found guilty of causing the abandonment of the DeMbare game and were fined $4 000.
What we also know about the Mandava Stadium debacle is that Highlanders were also found guilty and were fined $2 500 for their part in the whole fiasco.
Although Shabanie Mine is a small community and it would have been easier to identify the perpetrators, what we know is that up to now the perpetrators of the violence have not yet been found.
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It is now a week after the Maglas debacle, but the culprits are moving scot free and not even a suspect has been arrested for his or her role in the whole scene.
This is not surprising as the police who are supposed to be in control of things are no longer doing their job, but instead come to watch football and more precisely, to cheer their favourite teams.
The question is: Why then are the clubs and the PSL forking out huge sums of money to pay the police? In view of what has happened and what is happening, the police should pay their way to watch the games — even if they are in uniform.
At the rate at which violence at football matches is increasing, it is a matter of time before these acts result in deaths.
The fact that assistant referee Thomas Kusosa was hit by a bottle is a warning that talking of people dying during the clashes would not be too farfetched.
Thus, Zimbabwean football authorities should move fast to get rid of hooliganism before disaster strikes.
It was all a hoax
Football is not immune to the effects of social media and the Caps United family were the latest casualties after they got word that the Premier Soccer League (PSL) Disciplinary Committee had ordered a replay of their aborted Chibuku Super Cup semi-final match against Shabanie Mine.
The word was greeted with excitement, as the Green Machine family were made to believe that they still had a chance to have a go at the trophy — a place in the 2018 Caf Confederation Cup and above all, a $75 000 Christmas bonus.
The message which circulated on WhatsApp gave the impression that the PSL Disciplinary Committee had singled out assistant referee Kusosa as the reason for the abandonment of the game and had thereby ordered a replay at the “neutral” Ascot Stadium.
The message also went on to say that Makepekepe had been fined for the behavior of their fans while Shabanie Mine were also found guilty of providing lax security.
It later turned out it was the creation of an enthusiastic football follower who wanted to make fun of the situation. The truth is that, the PSL Disciplinary Committee are still looking at the submissions from the match officials, Caps United and Shabanie Mine before they come up with a judgement.
However, by the end of this week, everyone will know whether there will be a replay or not, or whether the 70 minutes which were played at Maglas Stadium were the last for the Green Machine in this year’s edition of the Chibuku Super Cup.
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