BY HENRY MHARA
HERENTALS coach Kumbirai Mutiwekuziva says the domestic league should continue despite a rise in coronavirus cases.
Seven round three top-flight league matches of were called off at the weekend due to Covid-19 cases, with Herentals versus Ngezi Platinum Stars on Saturday at the Baobab Stadium in Mhondoro-Ngezi being the only topflight match that went ahead as scheduled.
The hosts won the match 3-0 courtesy of goals from Nyasha Chintuli, Bruno Mtigo and Anelka Chivandire.
The match went ahead despite a combined six cases being recorded in the two camps.
Mutiwekuziva has urged clubs to remain vigilant in the fight against Coronavirus so that football could continue “just like in other countries.”
“It’s not only Zimbabwe that has got COVID-19, all the countries around the world have been affected but they are moving on,” Mutiwekuziva told NewsDaySport.
“This is very important for us to consider. We have to learn to live in this new environment which might be there to stay forever. We have a disease amongst us, but sport has to develop at the same time. We have to be brave and try to make ways to play the game so that sport and the players don’t suffer at the end of the day. I feel that football has to go on regardless of this pandemic. We have seen other countries pushing to play despite having cases. We should do the same.”
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The Students had four players returning positive tests in the build-up to the Saturday match. He said the uncertainty that hung over the match could have contributed to his team’s defeat.
“The COVID-19 issue was also a major factor because we were not quite sure if the match would go on. The situation was giving us a dilemma and also it was stressful for the players because we had about four cases in camp. That on its own disturbed us,” he said.
Ngezi Platinum Stars coach Rodwell Dhlakama whose side now tops the log following the latest win, also said he wants to see domestic football continuing, but only when it was safe to do so.
“If the environment is not conducive and the health officials are saying we should not continue with the games, then we should stop. This disease has affected everyone globally so we can’t continue if it’s not safe. Human life comes first before everything else,” Dhlakama said.
He said there was panic in his camp after two senior players including star player Denver Mukamba and a number of players in the juniors team tested positive.
“The way they stay in camp could have impacted negatively on them, especially considering that this is a dangerous disease that no one wants to be associated with. It affected the players psychologically but we spoke to them and we told them that this disease is there and we have to live with it. We hope going forward God will intervene and everyone will be healed.”
Dhlakama also explained why his team decided to host Herentals despite recording positive cases in their camp.
“We are an honest team,” Dhlakama said.
“We always want to win on the scoreboard. We don’t cheat. We were very honest to say that only two players tested positive and the rules say if you have seven or more players affected then the match can be postponed. Some teams hide behind that and say they have more players who have tested positive. But it’s normal, we come from different backgrounds. For us we were honest and we felt let us play the game as we were not affected that much.”
The weekend disruptions in domestic football sparked fears that this year’s league campaign could be halted as local cases continue to spike.
The domestic league failed to take off in March 2020 as the country went into lockdown in a bid to halt the spread of COVID-19.
- Follow Henry on Twitter @henrymhara
