BY MUNYARADZI MADZOKERE
THERE has been a shocking turn of events at the title chasing Harare giants Dynamos after they reached a decision to suspend head coach Tonderai Ndiraya yesterday.
The development came barely a week after Ndiraya’s high-riding Dynamos lost top spot to Chicken Inn in the race for the championships after unruly behaviour by the team’s fans caused the abandonment of their high profile clash with arch-rivals Highlanders at Barbourfields Stadium.
Dynamos were trailing by one goal to nil when the match was abandoned after its fans invaded the pitch.
But it is difficult to attach Ndiraya’s startling suspension to the teams’ performance and failure to get maximum points in Bulawayo last week with the club opting to be mum on the reason for the decision.
“We write to advise all stakeholders that our head coach Tonderai Ndiraya has been temporarily asked not to report for duty with immediate effect pursuant to a meeting that was held on 21 May 2022.
“The club is not in a position to discuss the details of this development until the internal due process is finalised,” read the statement released by the club yesterday evening.
Following the disturbances at Barbourfields Stadium seven days ago the Premier Soccer League (PSL) decided to cancel all week 16 matches to hold an indaba with football stakeholders on what needs to be done to stem the increasing incidences of rowdy behaviour by the fans at stadia.
And the Dynamos leadership took the opportunity to sanction their head coach, who has been impressive for the club so far this season.
The Harare giants currently sit second on the PSL log standings with 30 points from 15 matches, one behind pacesetters Chicken Inn and the club boasts of the meanest defence in the league having leaked just six goals so far.
For the better part of the season everything looked rosy for the Glamour Boys, who are bankrolled by energy giant Sakunda Holdings until reports emerged ahead of the Bosso tie that the club owed players winning bonuses in excess US$1000.
Reports also suggested that the Dynamos executive attempted to withhold players’ bonuses from the government for the team’s participation in the Independence Cup final where they lost 1-0 to Bosso.
It is understood that Dynamos received $4,5 million for finishing as runners-up and players had to demand for their share of the prize money.
Interestingly the reports credited Ndiraya for managing to keep the players playing in spite of the low morale in the Dynamos camp and the coach’s suspension could be linked to those events.
A video of a small group of Dynamos fans clamouring for Ndiraya’s dismissal following the 1 – 1 draw against Bulawayo City a fortnight ago made rounds.
However, the suspension of Ndiraya could ultimately derail Dynamos’ title chase.