HIGHLANDERS . . . . . . . . .(0)1 TRIANGLE . . . . . . . . . . . . .(1)1
A 10-MAN Triangle put up a classy show to salvage a point when they held Highlanders in a Castle Lager Premier Soccer League match that marked the end of the first half of the season at Barbourfields Stadium yesterday.
BY FORTUNE MBELE
Triangle were on target first through Pasca Manhanga who made no mistake as early as the 7th minute from a Brian Juwayeyi cross from the left after the latter had capitalised on a defensive blunder by Highlanders left-back Bruce Kangwa.
Bosso then replied nine minutes after the break through their man-of-the-moment Knox Mutizwa, who poked in a King Nadolo shot which took a deflection off a Triangle defender.
The only spectacle of the match was the red card shown to Triangle central defender Charles Rukwanhi by referee Hardly Ndazi for a second bookable offence, which led the match to be stopped for about five minutes as the Triangle officials protested the censure.
Eleven minutes of optional time was then added just before the break.
Rukwanhi was booked for hacking down Mutizwa in the 21st minute and two minutes later Ndazi flashed another yellow card and sent off the defender for wearing a wrong colour of tights under his shorts. Triangle were in red and white, but Rukwanhi had a black tight. Players who commit such an offences are normally asked to remove the tight or change.
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Triangle head coach Kelvin Kaindu was dumbfounded.
“I don’t like to comment on things that I don’t have control of. We have taken photographs of the player with undergarments. I don’t know if rules of football have changed. I will have to go and do my research. The red card impacted on us. It disturbed our rhythm,” Kaindu said.
However, Triangle held on with 10 men and Highlanders could not penetrate. With the draw, Triangle are now on 28 points, and closed the gap on log leaders Chicken Inn, who lost 0-2 to Chicken Inn to Caps United in Harare while Bosso remained stuck on position nine with 20 points.
Highlanders gaffer Bongani Mafu said his boys did not capitalise on numerous chances they created.
“It’s a game we could have won, we got the chances, but the goals never came. But the performance is getting better and it will come right soon,” Mafu said.
TEAMS
HIGHLANDERS: N Nyoni, W Chingodza, S Munawa, R Kutsanzira (V Ndaba 83’), K Nadolo, E Muzanenhamo (W Ndiweni 70’), O Tarumbwa, B Kangwa, K Mutizwa, H Moyo, E Mudzingwa
TRIANGLE: A Reyners, P Tonha, N Meson, E Mwinga, C Rukwanhi (red card 23’), T Chipunza, M Mukumba (J Tigere 46’), P Manhanga, H Bakacheza, B Juwayeyi (C Kamhapa 69’), C Denias (F Kuswatuka 60’)
