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Inside sport: What has happened to Norton brawl ?

Sport
Scott Sakupwanya did not show any respect for the thousands of football followers who sacrificed their hard earned cash to throng this small stadium to watch what was probably the biggest domestic football fixture of the weekend.

WHOEVER he thinks he is and whatever he has done - financially - to our game of football, Scott Sakupwanya's actions at Ngoni Stadium on August 17, 2024, should not go unchallenged and he should apologise to MWOS coach Lloyd Mutasa and should also be sanctioned heavily by the Zifa Northern Region.

He might have brought excitement to Division One football with his Scottland side but the behavior he displayed on that day poses a serious threat to our football if not checked in time and imagine what would have happened in Norton had all the people he bused there joined in the madness.

Imagine what would also have happened had the MWOS supporters and the Norton Community retaliated in support of the coach they so much love.

In fact, Scott did not show any respect for the thousands of football followers who sacrificed their hard earned cash to throng this small stadium to watch what was probably the biggest domestic football fixture of the weekend.

We have had too many financial sacrifices from those who bankrolled Amazulu, Blackpool, Gunners, Fire Batteries, Monomotapa, Lengthens, and many others, and never did we see them behave in such a reckless if not stupid manner of jumping over the fence to attack the opposition's coach -- or was it simply showing off for Norton to see that he was the SCOTTLAND ?

Such type of behaviour was the least we expected from a popular football club owner and moreso from a member of the Zimbabwean Parliament.

Even now we also have the likes of  Innocent Benza, Farai Jere, Walter Magaya, and Simba Ndoro, and many others, who are gushing out a lot of money in supporting our football but have not shown that type of behaviour

Surely no amount of money is enough to hit this Scott guy as punishment for his behavior but surely the Northern Region can find other ways of coming hard on such characters so that this kind of behaviour is not repeated.

What is disturbing, though, is that the Northern Region itself has been quite about the drama even, though their leadership of chairman Martin Kweza and secretary general, Sweeney Mushonga are said to have been at Ngoni Stadium and watched the drama unfold.

And as expected - some within our field of the media - have even jumped in to defend the Scottland owner, giving the impression that Scottland FC was wronged when in reality Sakupwanya was the one on the wrong side and should be sanctioned heavily.

We all know Lloyd Mutasa as a humble man from his playing days and now to his coaching career and we doubt that he could have instigated a move that deserved such a wild response.

In fact, the media, which was there chose to ignore the whole incident - as if nothing happened at all - and they continue to ignore the direction the drama is headed to.

However sports journalist Admire Muhimeke has questioned the tightness or efficiency of our security system at football matches.

"When one leaves his seat on the stands and goes into the playing ground unchecked clearly shows that something is wrong somewhere with the security system. This is not the first time this has happened. We have seen referees being attacked. We need to improve on security to protect the coaches, the referees, and the players," points out Muhimeke.

The threat that Scottland will pull out of the Zifa Northern Region is not new to our ears and if they pull out, the effect won't be felt at all - After all, they came into the league this season and are behaving as if they are more special than the rest of the 19 teams that make up the assembly.

More importantly is the fact that they cannot hold the league at ransom in any way because they were not invited into the Northern Region but came on their own accord and can still go back the same way they came.

Before yesterday' matches, Black Rhinos led the way in Division One with 46 points followed by MWOS and Harare City tied on 45 points with Scottland in fourth place with 43 points.

Surely, if Scottland Football Club are to win the Division One Championship, they should know that they can only do so on the football field and not through the Floyd Mayweather way of boxing gloves.

After all has been said and done, we are still waiting on how the Northern Region will deal with the case of Scott Sakupwanya, the owner of Scottland Football Club and a Member of Parliament for Mabvuku.

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