Zimpapers Logo

Minister Makhosini Hlongwane

Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Sports Reporter
THE Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) will convene a special board meeting to deliberate on problems bedevilling rugby in the country following serious concerns raised by the Ministry of Sport and Recreation.

According to SRC board chairperson Edward Siwela, the meeting will be held on Monday and a detailed report will be compiled for Sports and Recreation Minister, Makhosini Hlongwane.

“The meeting is basically to address the developments in rugby, a review of what has been happening in the game and what needs to be done,” said Siwela.

Following a string of poor results in the Rugby Africa Gold Cup that saw the Sables losing three games in a row and facing the grim prospects of being relegated to the lower tier, Hlongwane directed the SRC to convene an emergency meeting with the Zimbabwe Rugby Union leadership led by its president Nyararai Sibanda to find ways of reversing the current administrative and performance challenges.

Hlongwane blamed the continued factional fights within the ZRU for rendering the union “completely and acutely dysfunctional” resulting in the downward slide of the game and losing to non-traditional rugby countries such as Kenya, Tunisia and Namibia. Sources within the rugby fraternity have indicated that some elements are deliberately fomenting division in a bid to discredit Sibanda’s leadership.

@skhumoyo2000