Should DeMbare fail to win the championship, Bosso will be one of the very few teams anywhere in the world to play 24 games without a defeat and still fail to land the golden crown. They lead the resurgent Bulawayo giants with two points, with the two teams yet to meet for a return fixture in Harare, where Highlanders have found the going tough even in their best of seasons.
Only in the days of Tapuwa Kapini and Ralph Matema did Bosso beat DeMbare in their own backyard, with even the potent 1999-2002 machine failing to post convincing results there and coming at the end of a 5-0 drubbing at some stage.
Had Bosso found an extra goal in at least half of the eight matches they drew, especially against such token opposition like Quelaton and Harare City at Barbourfields, they would be in control of their own destiny now, following Dynamos’ 1-0 midweek loss to Chicken Inn in Bulawayo.
All is not lost though and their coach, Kelvin Kaindu, still believes that the 2006 champions are still in it to win it. “We are still in the race,” he said, adding that the loss had not affected morale in his camp since it was only the first one in ten months.
Kaindu added that Highlanders still enjoyed the status of the most consistent side so far, a development that always acts as solace when the going gets tough. He could still be right. Besides the loss, Highlanders have played well in the capital this season, something they have only done in their championship-winning years and the fact that they managed to beat Hwange at the Colliery, where Dynamos could still fall, makes them a dangerous side that can upset even the Glamour Boys in their backyard, as they did in 2006 under Methembe Ndlovu.
The delay of the verdict of the Hwange appeal, after Chipangano sought a replay of the match they controversially lost 4-2 to Dynamos in the capital, where the coalminers’ coaches were assaulted by Dembare bouncers, has added to tension in the league, with some sections of the league raising allegations of favouritism on the part of ZIFA.
The PSL had ordered a replay of the match, but the ZIFA Appeals Committee overturned that and re-instated Dynamos’ three points, against all logic.
Post published in: Sport