Their championship pedigree has been questioned during their last six games, which were dominated by draws, but at the weekend Highlanders made a clear statement of intent.
Their 7-1 weekend massacre of troubled city rivals, Quelaton, raised the Bulawayo giants’ goals to 34 in 16 matches, an average of more than 2 goals a game – a good ingredient for any title-chasing outfit. This was the highest scoring game by any winning team, Dynamos coming second with their half a dozen strikes in their 6-0 win over Blue Rangers a few weeks ago. The Bosso feat makes their strike force the best this season, 13 goals ahead of second placed Shabanie, who have banged in 23 goals so far. On the other hand, the Kelvin Kaindu-coached side now has 36 points, four ahead of the Chinda Boys.
In the event that the league runs into a photo finish as seen last season, where champions Dynamos and runners up FC Platinum were separated by a goal difference, Highlanders will have the even-keel, should things continue in this manner.
Dynamos are not faring any worse, picking up vital points both at home and away to make clear their intention to retain the crown. The Harare giants’ 2-1 win away at FC Platinum saw them march on. Platinum have not won against Dembare in all four matches the two sides have played since last year. Before the game kicked-off, riot police set dogs on Dembare’s Bulawayo supporters for occupying a grandstand believed to be a reserve of FC Platinum.
The incident, which almost degenerated into chaos, could have easily been avoided but the police went on to arrest dozens of fans who had paid to support the reigning champions. After the match, police again set a pack of dogs on supporters celebrating their team’s victory.
It was not the first time that police in Zvishavane had harassed supporters of FC Platinum’s visiting opponents. On the day of the side’s derby against rivals Shabanie, more than 80 fans of the Chinda Boys were reportedly arrested amid reports a senior police official had given an instruction for the clampdown.
Post published in: Football