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“TO be, or not to be . . . ” is the opening phrase of a soliloquy in the “Nunnery Scene” of William Shakespeare’s  play Hamlet. In the speech, a despondent or feigning Prince Hamlet contemplates death and suicide.  He bemoans the pains and unfairness of life but acknowledges the alternative   might still be worse.

He seems uncertain on which route to take. And in many times in life, individuals and even institutions find themselves asking “to be or not to be”. The result of that question is procrastination. Nathannuyen, in his online blog, refers to the adage procrastination as the thief of time. The writer suggests the adage should ring a bell for everyone, since time is an essential aspect of life. Time once lost, is lost forever. If unfortunate, you will never  acquire opportunities again and maybe  lucky, you will attain better chances in life, but the same opportunity that you obtain in that particular moment will be lost forever, he argues.

He adds that usually, our time elapses because we are either late or we postpone doing things. The more we delay or procrastinate, the more we tend to lose out on many things of life. After all, time is money. Time is treasure that is insoluble — a mystery we must set out to figure. By procrastinating, we are rescheduling the things in our  lives that shouldn’t necessarily be overlooked. Time lost, is a loss forever and it can’t be retrieved. Therefore the saying “procrastination is the thief of time” is one adage whose words are effective and truthful in real life.

The topic then leads us to another piece of work by Shakespeare, where he suggested that “All cats love fish, but fear to wet their paws.”

This is a traditional saying, dating back to at least the 16th century, used to describe a person who is keen to obtain something of value, but who is not bold enough to make the necessary effort or to take the risk. It is to this saying that Shakespeare referred in Macbeth: Letting “I dare not’ wait upon, I would.”

Tapping from the books of literature, back home, Highlanders fans are asking themselves if the executive has borrowed some robs from the likes of Hamlet and Macbeth. This is so because the club has been without a head coach since the departure of Zambian expatriate Kelvin Kaindu at the end of September, and ten weeks later, the club is still searching for a suitable candidate to replace him.

The critics of the executive have questioned why Kaindu was released from his contract when no suitable candidate had been identified, which led to the club throwing assistant coach Mark Mathe to the deep end, and the results of the move are all there for everyone to interpret. Even some disgruntled club members, who are now known as the “Petition group”, have also queried why the club was taking time to appoint   a new coach, and also using it to buttress  their call for an early Annual General Meeting so that issues can be discussed and elections held so that who ever assumes  office is able to make the necessary appointments.

What we have been hearing are names of coaches from as far as Scotland, England, Brazil, Nigeria, South Africa and from  home, as the top job at Highlanders has attracted a lot of interest. And rightfully so, the club is a big institution whose history  can not be erased by finishing outside the top four in an odd season, in a year that was to end on a sour note again with the death of club long time benefactor and patron Taffi Moyo.

Club chief executive Ndumiso Gumede has been telling the media that his office has been inundated by CVs from all over the world, but club fans out there want to know who will be in charge and they want that person sooner than later, so that the club has a proper pre-season training so that the coach is able to pick his men and hit the ground running.

Club chairman, Peter Dube, who has maintained a cool head despite being under a barrage of attack from fans who believe he did not take them to the Promised Land, this week said the coach would be announced before the end of next week. Desmond Bulpin, from Europe, is touted as the next coach, with former Zimbabwe Saints coach Bongani Mafu tipped to have some role in the new set up as well.

From the names being thrown around, there is no former club player being tipped, with former club coaches Rahman Gumbo and Madinda Ndlovu reportedly happy in their adopted home in Botswana. While they are not the only former players who ventured into coaching, they remain the top two coaches to emerge from the pool of Highlanders legends, with many others making it here and there in lower leagues, save for the late Adam Ndlovu who was at Chicken Inn.

Those who have researched on Bulpin say he is a good coach, with vast experience and will fit the bill for a big club like Highlanders. He is the head coach at Football League Championship side Millwall in Scotland and managed the Philippines national team between 2009 and 2010. He rates among the grey hairs of football, aged 63, and   the question is could he be the successor to youthful Kaindu, who is almost half his age?

On the other hand, Mafu, a Bulawayo lad born and bred in Lobengula, brother to former Warriors midfielder Ronald Sibanda, is a kind of guy you would love to have around you. Somehow reserved, but full of life, full of ideas and always ready to take up challenges and does not mince his words that he is a Bosso fan at heart. He might not have played or coached Highlanders before, as when he ventured into coaching, while still teaching at Christian Brothers College, Highlanders were high riding with Gumbo doing wonders, and then he found the opportunity to show the world what he can do at Zimbabwe Saints. And he did not disappoint, leading them to a third season finish.

He rates among the highest qualified coaches, having attained at Uefa B coaching badge in the UK, where he has been based coaching schools and academies and at some point working as a school teacher, teaching French. Could he get the job he has been waiting for all his life?

“We’ll stand guided by our budget limitations whether we hire a local coach or a foreign one. We’ve not finalised on the issue, we know people are anxious about it but look, our interest is to have the best coach taking over at the club. I remain confident that by Christmas Day, we’ll have announced who will coach Bosso next year,” club chairman Dube told this publication this week.

Dube appears disputing that theyare like a “cat that wants to catch a fish but does not want to wet its paws”, and  insists they are taking their time to get  the best guy for the job, and only time will judge.

In the midst of all this, their bitter enemies, Dynamos, who lost head coach Callisto Pasuwa when the season ended recently, after their former player won them four championships on the run, have moved fast to appoint his successor, bringing back former coach David Mandigora. It is this kind of swift action in Harare that has unsettled Highlanders fans who are now putting pressure on their leadership to get a coach as well while there is still time to look for players to strengthen the team and come with a pre-season training schedule to ensure a serious onslaught on the league title next season. Nonetheless, it has been a fruitful sporting year, and let me wish all followers of this blog a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Year.

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