The three were key figures in a largely dispiriting 2014 campaign at Bantu, who were literally one of the Castle Lager Premiership’s punch-bags and duly secured their ticket back to Division One well before the season officially ended.
Yet Hadebe, Masuku and Tarumbwa did enough to generate interest in their services and have rightly earned a move to one of the league’s glamour clubs.
And while Masuku and Hadebe will be looking to accelerate their development, Tarumbwa desperately needs to resurrect a career which has been in free fall since his departure for Belgian outfit Cercle Brudge back in 2008. And he returns to where it all started at just about the right time, with new coach Bongani Mafu having earlier indicated he needed an experienced hand to guide a largely youthful frontline in what looks set to be a rigorous campaign.
Tarumbwa’s goal threat might have diminished considerably over the years (statistics show he scored two goals in as many seasons in Greece, and none whatsoever in Belgium) but his physicality and ability to run at defences and shoot from range were all in evidence last season.
Moreover, a full year of regular football has gone some way in restoring the self-belief needed for him regain his scoring touch.
Masuku on the other hand brings the kind of box-to-box qualities that are likely to make Highlanders a more potent force. The 21-year-old has a tigerish streak about him when deployed in front of the back four.
But his abundant energy and wide range of passing also enable him to frequently ask questions of opposition defences.
And the Highlanders prayers for a young, rising star in the heart of defence have been answered through the arrival of Hadebe.
Post published in: Football