News (4)
Kwekwe United . . . . . . . . (0)1
Scottland FC . . . . . . . . . . (2)5
IN a performance of ruthless efficiency and breathtaking flair, Scottland FC made history to clinch the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title in their debut top-flight season, routing Kwekwe United with a scintillating 5-1 victory at Ascot Stadium.
The final whistle was immediately followed by a torrential downpour — a coronation that felt like a shower of blessings from the football gods upon the ecstatic “Mabvivira” fans.
Scottland FC has now etched its name into the annals of Zimbabwean football, becoming only the second club in the history of the modern Premier League to win the championship in its maiden season, a feat last achieved by the legendary Black Rhinos class of 1984.
With two matches to spare, yesterday's victory lifted Scottland to an unassailable 65 points, securing the title, seven points ahead of second-placed MWOS.
The man orchestrating this extraordinary success is coach Tonderai Ndiraya, who now adds another golden chapter to his coaching career.
Ndiraya has achieved the unthinkable — guiding two clubs to maiden league titles in consecutive seasons, having lifted the championship with Simba Bhora in their second season last year.
His strategic acumen has been the cornerstone of Scottland’s triumphant season.
Speaking after the match, an emotional Ndiraya was quick to underscore his team's unique achievement and hit back at critics.
“I think we are the first team since Black Rhinos in 1984, but the difference between us and Black Rhinos is that they were assembled in Division One, won the title there, and then won the title in their first season in the PSL,” Ndiraya said.
“We assembled our team this year and won the title. So [we were] champions in Division One, then assembled a new, strong team for the Premier League, and here we are. This is history.”
He then addressed the early-season doubters.
“I think there was a lot of negativity around the recruitment policy back then, but I’m happy that in the end, we have the last laugh. So, I want to thank our fans for sticking with us, even when things were not good. We have brought a trophy, a huge
trophy for that matter, for them.”
On his personal achievement, Ndiraya was reflective: “It’s not easy to change from one team to another, assemble a new team, and win the league. That record, that history, will be stuck in my heart for quite a long time.”
From the moment the match kicked off, the visitors, donning their championship stripes, were intent on claiming their destiny.
Scottland started on the ascendancy, and it took a spectacular, point-blank save from Kwekwe United goalkeeper Elton Nechiware to deny a Tymon Machope header.
Nechiware, in a valiant but ultimately futile effort, also acrobatically tipped a wicked free-kick from veteran star Knowledge Musona over the bar.
The pressure proved relentless. The deadlock was finally broken at the half-hour mark when the irrepressible Khama Billiat put Scottland one hand on the trophy. After a clever flick-on by Machope, Billiat demonstrated his world-class quality by delicately chipping the ball over the on-rushing Nechiware, sending the travelling fans into a frenzy.
Four minutes later, the Golden Boot contender Machope doubled the score. Receiving a brilliant through ball from midfield maestro Mthokozisi Msebe, Machope finished coolly for his 14th goal of the season.
Only Nechiware’s brilliance again, with a stunning stop to deny a Machope brace before the break, kept the scoreline manageable.
The second half began with an early scare for the hosts as Scottland substitute, Takudzwa Chimhowa, rattled the crossbar directly from a corner kick before the ball bounced out of play. Normal service — Scottland dominance and Nechiware heroics — soon resumed, with the Kwekwe shot-stopper denying Musona's fierce rising shot from inside the box.
The hosts had a brief flicker of hope on 85 minutes when a snapshot from outside the box marked their first meaningful shot on target.
But the Scottland machine was unstoppable. Veteran defender Ronald Pfumbidzai made it three in the 70th minute with a well-taken goal, putting the result beyond doubt. Tadiwanashe Chakuchichi, a 16-year-old talent, put the icing on the cake, bagging the fourth goal — his first in the league — four minutes later from close range.
The teenager would go on to win a stoppage-time penalty, which Machope confidently dispatched to complete his brace.
SOURCE:NEWSDAY
Simba Bhora 1-1 Highlanders
WHEN Joel Luphahla trudged off the Wadzanayi pitch after his team’s 1-1 draw with Highlanders on Saturday, he looked every bit a man burdened by regret.
The match had started brightly, with Bosso’s Benjamin Adeogun opening the scoring in the 16th minute before Butholezwe Ncube levelled four minutes before the break. Yet the draw did little to lift either side. Both extended their winless runs to six games, and Simba Bhora slipped to third on the Premier Soccer League table behind Scottland and MWOS.
But it was Luphahla’s team selection that left the terraces buzzing.
For a side desperate to end a barren spell, the coach’s decision to start with five defensive midfielders and no recognised striker baffled many. In a major shake-up, he dropped regulars Junior Makunike, Donald Mudadi and Emmanuel Ziocha, opting for a cautious line-up featuring Never Tigere, Barnabas Mtuche, Blessed Ndereki and Ncube, with Tavonga Kuleya pushed forward as a makeshift attacker.
“I blame myself for how things turned out, and I take full responsibility for all of it,” said a visibly downcast Luphahla after the match.
The experiment misfired early. Simba looked blunt upfront, offering little threat. Highlanders capitalised when Adeogun slipped through an exposed defence to beat William Thole.
Luphahla admitted his players struggled to follow instructions.
“We changed the way we start our games, but maybe because of pressure, they failed to execute the two-touch play we wanted, especially in midfield. The boys rushed things, forcing one touches and it cost us crucial points at home.”
Soon after conceding, Simba Bhora’s owner, Simba Ndoro and his board were spotted in a tense meeting near the dugout. Within minutes, Luphahla responded by introducing Makunike and Boid Mutukure for Ndereki and Mtuche.
The hosts grew slightly steadier but continued to lack bite until the 41st minute when Bosso’s Andrew Mbeba was stretchered off with a groin injury. Moments later, Ncube struck back for Simba, restoring parity and giving the home crowd a flicker of hope.
Makunike nearly doubled the lead before halftime with a thunderous long range strike that skimmed over the bar.
After the break, both sides traded blows in a tense, physical contest. In the 60th minute, Luphahla threw on Ziocha, Mudadi, and top scorer Isaskar Gurirab to boost the attack. The trio brought energy and creativity, but Highlanders’ defence, marshalled by an inspired Ariel Sibanda, held firm.
Ziocha came closest to winning it in the 77th minute, driving into the box after a sharp Gurirab pass, only to be denied by Sibanda’s quick reflexes.
As pressure mounted, tempers flared. Players, coaches, and officials exchanged heated words, turning the closing stages into a storm of frustration and fouls.
“We hit a bad patch at a bad phase of the campaign. I’m disappointed in myself, but above all, we learnt a lot,” Luphahla reflected.
Highlanders, meanwhile, return to Bulawayo still not entirely safe from the drop.
Coach Pieter de Jongh, though, found comfort in the draw.
“Wadzanayi is not an easy venue for visiting teams. It’s difficult for anyone to win here, and I’m happy my boys showed a lot of character,” he said.
“The game was tense. We had to remain calm because if we had gone at them the same way, we would have lost. This point is important for us. We just need at least three from the last two games, but there’s no reason to panic.”
SOURCE: THE HERALD
Ngezi Platinum Stars . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
Triangle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0
(Triangle win 6-5 after a penalty shoot-out)
THE drama continued to unfold in the 2025 edition of the Chibuku Super Cup on Sunday as underdogs Triangle brewed the latest upset in the competition by dumping first round hosts Ngezi Platinum Stars at Baobab.
The teams had to be separated by a penalty shoot-out tie-break following a goalless draw in regulation time.
And former Young Warriors forward Delic Murimba had to be the fall guy in the shoot-out, having come in as a substitute and then later missing the decisive kick from the spot that handed Triangle the passage to the last eight.
It was a nervy finish as the tie-break evolved into a sudden death with Triangle converting six of the seven kicks via Munyaradzi Mawadza, Mainford Mudzimu, Ali Maliselo, Praise Machengete, Tawanda Chatubuka and Munashe Bamala.
Their coach Genesis Mangombe was excited by the turn of events as the Sugar Sugar Boys recovered from a false start after versatile left-back Nomore Chinyerere had the first kick saved by goalkeeper Darlington Murasiranwa.
“It’s difficult when you reach those moments,” said Mangombe.
“But in a game of football, you have to play until the end. I am happy with the character of the boys because we missed the first penalty and because of that character we came back and we managed to win the game.”
The Sugar Sugar Boys, who travelled over 600km for two Chibuku Super Cup games inside four days, returned to the Lowveld with a great deal of satisfaction, having also beaten Kwekwe United 1-0 in the preliminary round last Thursday.
Mangombe felt they could have wrapped up the game inside regulation time. He is no stranger to causing upsets against the platinum miners as he led Dynamos to their first Chibuku Super Cup success in 2023 at the expense of Takesure Chiragwi’s men.
Mangombe feels Triangle have the capacity to progress in this competition despite their woes in the league competition this season. They had efforts from Ali Sadiki and Mawadza disallowed yesterday.
“We are doing well. Even some of the (disallowed) goals, I thought the referee could have let one or two stand but it’s a game of football.
“They are close to the situation and sometimes, maybe there was an infringement; we don’t know. But we were superior. We were better than our opponents. We had so many entries into the box and had so many chances than them.
“It means we are building something, but we have a dilemma because are also fighting relegation. We will see how we are going to balance the two,” said Mangombe.
Ngezi Platinum Stars coach Chiragwi conceded defeat. Veteran Kudzai Chigwida, Qadr Amini, Nisbert Muzenda, Leslie Kashtigu and Brooklyn Katumba converted their spot kicks while substitutes Ashwin Karengesha and Murimba missed.
“Firstly, I just want to appreciate the effort from the players. But generally I think we didn’t play our normal game, to be honest,” said Chiragwi.
“It was difficult during the last minutes. Of course here and there we did manage to create some chances which we thought could take us home but that’s how it is.
“Sometimes God favours those that want it more. So, they deserved to win. They played very well. Congratulations to Triangle, and I wish them very well in the next stage.”
Triangle emulated Dynamos, Bikita Minerals and Manica Diamonds, who shrugged off the underdog tag to progress to the fquarter-finals, interestingly in similar fashion after winning penalty shoot-outs.
Scottland and MWOS also made it to the last eight. The draw for the quarter-finals will be conducted after the remaining two fixtures that were postponed.
Giants Highlanders are set to face Herentals while Chicken Inn and ZPC Kariba clash in another rescheduled game.
SOURCE: THE HERALD
Dynamos . . . . . . . . . . . .(0) 1
Simba Bhora . . . . . . . . (0) 0
A SHADRECK Nyahwa goal at the start of the second half gave Dynamos a long-awaited premier league victory as they beat defending champions Simba Bhora at Rufaro Stadium on Sunday.
The midfielder slotted home into an empty net after a howler by Simba Bhora's goalkeeper, William Thole, who misjudged a Nomore Chinyerere cross following a corner in the 50th minute.
Yesterday's victory was the Harare giants' second triumph over Simba Bhora this term after beating the Shamva-based team in the season-opening Castle Challenge Cup at the end of February.
It was Dynamos' first league victory in eight matches since they beat FC Platinum 2-0 at Rufaro on November 2 last year.
Dynamos coach Lloyd Chigowe said he was still trying to integrate the club's new players into the side but was relieved to collect his first victory in four matches.
The other three matches ended in draws.
"I'm grateful for the performance by my team," a relieved Chigowe said.
"They stuck to instructions. We knew pretty well that after beating Simba in the Challenge Cup, they would come at us. But we knew that it was key for us to be able to absorb the pressure and take our chances when they came. Indeed, we managed to get the chance and we threw the ball in the net. We suffered a little bit, but in the end, we scored and managed to collect three points."
Nyahwa's goal was the first time that a Dynamos player had scored in the league this season.
Victory moved Dynamos out of the relegation zone into sixth position on the log standings with six points from a possible 12.
This was Simba Bhora's first defeat of the season. They dropped to 12th position, although they are a point away from Dynamos.
Their coach, Joel Luphahla, who was Chigowe's assistant last season, was disappointed that he could not outsmart his mentor on the second time of asking.
"It was always going to be a difficult game coming here versus Dynamos. I felt that the boys tried their best, but Dynamos was more motivated in the sense that maybe I came from here last season, so the motivation was always there. They don't want to lose to their former coach.
"I'm very confident with the team that we have. We are still trying to find ways to finish off matches. We didn't create more today, maybe half chances, but at the end of the day, we have played four games, it's a worry, it's a concern that we have scored only one goal."
A quiet opening half saw two half-decent openings, one for each side —Frank Agyemang wriggling his way into the box but the ball tangled with his feet and he couldn't shoot, with only the keeper to beat, while Blessing Moyo's free kick from range was parried away by Dynamos goalkeeper Prince Tafiremutsa at the other end moments before the break.
A triple substitute at the start of the second half for Simba Bhora saw them seizing control in midfield, but it was Chigowe's men who almost took the lead soon after the restart.
Leeroy Mavhunga slipped through Agyemang, but Thole came flying off his line to block the danger.
The Malawi international, however, made a mess of Dynamos's next attack.
Emmanuel Jalai found Chinyerere with a short corner, and the left-back clipped a high ball into the box with his weaker right foot.
The keeper charged off his line to try and cut off the cross, but completely missed the ball, which fell invitingly for Nyahwa to tap into an empty net.
Agyemang should have doubled the lead moments later when he was again picked inside the box by Mavhunga, but the Ghanaian side-footed his effort over the cross bar.
Simba Bhora took over control of the match afterward as they searched for a leveller, but the Dynamos' defence held firm to secure a crucial victory.
Teams
Dynamos: P Tafiremutsa, E Jalai, T Magwaza, N Chinyerere, C Mandivei, S Nyahwa, F Agyemang (E Chikona, 72'), T Pio, V Ngwenya, L Mavhunga (L Gwatidzo, 82'), V Kadonzvo (R Chingwara, 77').
Simba Bhora: W Thole, C Makambira (T Meke, 46') W Tafa, I Mauchi, B Moyo, I Nyanhi (B Ndereki, 46'), B Ncube, J Makunike (T Mavhunga, 46'), E Ziocha (D Mudadi, 70'), I Gurirab, W Manondo (M Hwata 70').
SOURCE: NEWSDAY
