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Petros Kausiyo, Harare Bureau
AFTER a largely forgettable year during which their ship hit turbulent water, good times are set to roll for the senior Zimbabwe rugby side following the appointment of a Sables organising committee that will cater for their needs.
Prominent Harare lawyer Gerald Mlotshwa will chair the committee which is expected to have at least six other members early into the New Year.

Mlotshwa has been an all-weather friend of the Zimbabwe Rugby Union often assisting the association in different spheres.

As Zimbabwe look to mount a strong challenge for a place at the 2019 World Cup, it is imperative that the Sables focus on their qualification campaign which starts in June without having to worry much about the kind of off-field matters that impacted negatively on them during the 2017 Africa Gold Cup tournament.

And the Zimbabwe Rugby Union have sought to avoid the problems that rocked the country’s flagship team by ensuring there is an organising committee in place which will look after the Sables brand.

The ZRU have also started their head hunt for a new national team coach following the resignation of Cyprian Mandenge.

Mandenge literally fought a lone battle as he tried to steer the Sables in their failed Africa Gold Cup campaign this year with the senior team paying the huge price for the in-fighting that characterised the ZRU executive under Nyararai Sibanda.

A combination of a loss of form and poor preparations emanating from the administrative challenges that rocked the ZRU meant that the Sables flattered to deceive after getting off to a blistering start in the Group A1 campaign where they beat hapless Senegal 31-16 away in Dakar.

But that was all they had to show for their industry in a campaign that horribly went off the rails and as Mandenge threw in the towel, he told the nation that the Sables had been abandoned by those who should have helped make the players’ and his job easier during the Gold Cup games.

Now with a new executive led by Aaron Jani, wasting no time in putting together structures that will ensure a more effective style of administering rugby, Mlotshwa, who leads a Trust that has been assisting the union, was appointed the Sables Organising committee chairman.

Jani wrote to the Harare lawyer also outlining the terms of reference of his Sables committee.

“The Zimbabwe Rugby Union executive in accordance with constitutional and operational guidelines which enable the executive to form committees to address specific matters relating to union governance would like to appoint you to serve as chairman of the Zimbabwe Rugby Union’s Zimbabwe Sables Organising Committee.

The terms of reference outlined by the ZRU boss include:

-Assemble a working committee that will be responsible in the organising of activities (camps, tours and games) for the Zimbabwe Sables team
-The committee will plan that roadmap of the Zimbabwe Sables and will be guided by the Zimbabwe Rugby Union technical committee
-The committee will include a member of the Zimbabwe Rugby Union executive committee, secretariat or a board member of the Zimbabwe Rugby Union
-The committee is mandated to fundraise for the Zimbabwe Sables team’s needs (camps, games, tournaments insurance, medical needs)
-Enter into sponsorship partnerships on behalf of the team with the consent of the union of the union in writing
-To set and pay out allowances for players, technical staff and any additional consultants that the team many need from time to time
-The committee may not enter into debt except with the direct consent of the Zimbabwe Rugby Union in writing
-The committee to provide books of accounts for audit in line with finance committee dictates and requirements
Comply with all tax laws of Zimbabwe
-The committee will be answerable to the Zimbabwe Rugby Union executive committee,’’ wrote Jani.

The   ZRU president also indicated to Mlotshwa that there are no set periodicals for when the Sables Committee should meet as they could converge when the need arose.

“The Zimbabwe Sables organising committee shall meet as and when necessary, all deliberations, discussions and documentation specific to the Zimbabwe Sables organising committee shall remain private and confidential.

“Such information cannot be shared with any party outside of the executive or the Zimbabwe Sable organising committee,’’ Jani said.

In accepting responsibility to continue serving the game, Mlotshwa reportedly wants a team that will hit the ground running with sources also indicating that he is already in the process of assembling a squad that will lay the groundwork for a potentially successful qualifying campaign next year.

“Mlotshwa is in the process of appointing a committee of not more than seven members comprised of successful and credible people who do not need to make a living from rugby.

“This committee will essentially handle most of the affairs of the men’s national rugby side, in particular finances and logistics, in order that the Sables are provided the best possible circumstances within which to qualify for the 2019 Rugby World Cup. The committee will be announced early in the New Year and is expected to ‘hit the ground running’,’’ the sources said.

After settling the issue of the Sables organising committee, Jani and his executive know they cannot afford to take long before they identify the new national coach who has to ensure that Zimbabwe will be ready by the time they begin qualification bid for a place at the Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Zimbabwe’s first assignment will be a home tie against Morocco in June.

The 2018 Gold Cup will act as the final qualifying tournament to pick one of the teams that will join South Africa as two of Africa’s representatives at the World Cup and only the top team from the Gold Cup will qualify automatically for the global showpiece.

Should the Sables fail to win the Gold Cup ticket and end as runners-up they will have another chance for qualification at a repechage tournament later on in the year.

Africa Gold Cup 2018 fixtures:
June 16: Zimbabwe v Morocco, Namibia v Uganda
June 23: Namibia v Tunisia, Morocco v Kenya
June 30: Kenya v Zimbabwe, Morocco v Namibia
July 7: Kenya v Uganda, Tunisia v Zimbabwe
August 4: Uganda v Tunisia, Zimbabwe v Namibia
August 11: Uganda v Morocco, Kenya v Tunisia
August 18: Uganda v Zimbabwe, Namibia v Kenya, Tunisia v Morocco