AFTER succumbing to their first-ever defeat to high-flying Chicken Inn on Wednesday, Highlanders have yet another tricky league football match tomorrow when they clash with on-fire Caps United at the National Sports Stadium.
REPORT BY FORTUNE MBELE
The league pacesetters – smarting from their third home defeat and Chicken Inn – both hit the road. There will be no Castle Lager Premiership action this weekend for Bulawayo as How Mine will also be at Rufaro Stadium on Sunday against champions Dynamos, who were handed their first defeat of the season by Buffaloes on Wednesday in Mutare.
The GameCox, three points behind Bosso, travel to Zvishavane where they take on Shabanie Mine at Maglas Stadium as they question the authority at the top echelons of the Premiership standings at the close of the first half of the season.
Kudakwashe Mahachi packed a powerful shot past Ariel Sibanda to book Chicken Inn’s historic win over Bosso since coming into top-flight football.
During the two-week break, the 2012 Castle Lager Premiership Rookie of the Year told Southern Eye Sport that he was disappointed with his performance and hoped to up his game and after scoring the winner against Bosso on Wednesday, Mahachi was over the moon.
In his own words: “During the two-week break I told myself that I should start getting goals. My form was beginning to take a nose dive and I am very much happy to have scored that thunderbolt.”
But head coach Mandla “Lulu” Mpofu is cautious of Shabanie Mine, who lost 2-0 to Black Mambas at Morris Depot on Wednesday.
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“We have to cut short our celebrations and focus on Shabanie,” Mpofu said.
The undoing of Highlanders on Wednesday was the blunt strike force and the packed midfield with only Njabulo “Tshiki” Ncube upfront. One wonders what happened to Cleopas “Balotelli” Dube, Graham Ncube, Beaven Chikaka and Ozias Zibande, who at least showed offensive play after coming in for “Tshiki” 15 minutes from the final whistle.
The youthful forward definitely needs a bit of game time to prove his worth, as head coach Kelvin Kaindu mourns wasted chances.
“Football is won by scoring goals. We did not score goals, but created a lot of chances,” Kaindu, who shifts focus onto the Green Machine tomorrow, as he seeks to stretch the lead, said.
Maybe the return of Masimba Mambare, who had travelled with the Warriors to Guinea, will change Bosso’s fortunes against Caps United who rolled past Hwange 2-0 at the National Sports Stadium on Wednesday.
Bosso beat Caps United 1-0 at BF in July last year in the first half of the season and 2-0 at Rufaro in August with talisman Mambare scoring all the three goals over the two matches.
Highlanders are yet to lose away from home in 14 matches. They have lost both Bulawayo derbies against new boys How Mine and Chicken Inn and their third loss was suffered at the hands of Motor Action.
Fixtures Tomorrow: Tripple B v Buffaloes (Dulibadzimu), FC Platinum v Black Rhinos (Mandava), Caps United v Highlanders (National Sports) Sunday: Shabanie Mine v Chicken Inn (Maglas), Triangle United v Black Mambas (Gibbo), Dynamos v How Mine (Rufaro), Hwange v Harare City (Colliery)
