Highlanders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (2) 3 Shabanie Mine. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(1) 1 FORTUNE MBELE SPORTS REPORTER
HIGHLANDERS have themselves to blame for failing to clinch the 2013 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League title as they squandered close to 15 clear chances against Shabanie Mine in an exciting match at Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo yesterday.
Third-placed Harare City drew 2-2 with Caps United and could easily have grabbed the championship for the first time with a win over the Green Machine.
The Sunshine City Boys will get $30 000 for becoming second runner-up.
Bosso scored through Njabulo “Tshiki” Ncube as early as the 10th minute, Milton Ncube notching a beauty nine minutes later and another on the stroke of 90 minutes with an equally beautiful header.
Shabanie got their facesaver 23 minutes into the game after Bosso right-back Bruce Tshuma made a blind pass to the visitors’ Caleb Masocha who made no mistake and fired past goalkeeper Munyaradzi Diya with skipper Innocent Mapuranga failing to clear off the goal line.
The 4-0 drubbing at the hands of Harare City last Sunday in the capital returned to haunt Highlanders yesterday as head coach Kelvin Kaindu, who returned from the United Kingdom on Saturday, admitted.
Kaindu also rued yesterday’s missed chances by his charges — the main culprits being Milton Ncube, Knox Mutizwa, substitutes Ozias Zibande and Bhekimpilo “Barca” Ncube and playmaker Peter “Rio” Moyo while Masimba Mambare — taken out in the 65th minute — was totally out of the game.
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“The goal difference has put us on a disadvantage once again. It is the Harare City match where we conceded four goals and that is the game where we lost it. We have been struggling at home after creating so many chances. Everyone wanted to score, but they were not scoring,” a dejected Kaindu said.
He once again heaped praises on veteran striker Tshiki, whom he said made their game easy.
The veteran striker was substituted in the 27th minute after an injury.
Shabanie Mine head coach Luke Masomere, who said he was not certain about his stay at the former asbestos mining club, said he was happy that they had survived relegation with 40 points.
Tshiki dribbled past Caleb Masocha and tried to make his way past Shabanie Mine goalkeeper Victor Twaliki, who stopped him, but the forceful striker recovered from the goalminder’s save to chip the ball over for Bosso’s first goal.
Bosso right-back Tshuma then set up Milton, who roasted Rodney Mware on the left before a far corner curler that beat Twaliki.
But Tshuma became villain with a schoolboy blunder — instead of clearing the ball he made a blind square pass to an unmarked Masocha who pounced on the ball to fire past Diya.
Bosso continued to pound Shabanie and Milton got the head in the 90th minute getting onto the end of a Zibande cross. Highlanders have Diya to pay tribute to after he made several saves that could have landed Bosso the number two spot. Teams Highlanders: M Diya, B Tshuma, B Kangwa, E Mudzingwa, I Mapuranga, S Munawa, K Mutizwa (B Ncube 57min), P Moyo, N Ncube (O Zibande 27min), M Ncube, M Mambare (H Masuku 65min)
Shabanie Mine : V Twaliki, B Mbavarira (P Sithole 58min), R Mware, W Ngonya, S Muchabaiwa, T Mombeshora, F Bushiri, V Ndaba (P Mudena 82min), C Masocha, P Zimunya, N Maroto (F Chirinda 58min)
