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into a dysfunctional one that was so horrible it’s still a mystery they only lost 0-2 against South Africa here on Saturday?
Critics had warned about the weight of the burden that the Young Warriors, who were playing for both their country and themselves, were carrying ahead of this tie against the South Africans.
For most of the players in the Zimbabwe team, this was a grand opportunity to market themselves to the South African clubs and this brought that extra load of trying to push themselves a step further.
Not surprisingly, most of them failed to get into gear in a performance that was lifeless.
Zimbabwe’s head of delegation Fungai Chihuri took issue with the manner the Young Warriors entertained player agents and scouts at the Garden Court Hotel, on the eve of the match.
“Just how on earth do you expect the boys to remain focused on the game when agents and managers come to the hotel to talk about proposed big money moves with them?
“The issue of having our camp frequented by people who had nothing to do with our game against South Africa is one of the issues I will raise in my report,” said Chihuri.
Young Warriors’ coach Friday Phiri was putting up a brave face as the painstaking effort of going through the wreckage of Saturday’s 0-2 crash to South Africa in an All-Africa Games qualifier started, long before the team bus made its way out of the Sinaba Stadium complex.
A Bongani Ndulula-brace knocked the stuffing out of a Zimbabwean outfit that was sickeningly pedestrian on a stage where it was supposed to show its true class.
“What hurts is not the defeat but the manner in which we failed to play, there was no hunger and we let in soft goals,” said Phiri, in a frank appraisal of his team’s shocking performance.
“However, this is not the end as there is still a return leg to play in Harare and I have confidence that my boys will bounce back.
“It won’t be easy but it is possible.”
Zimbabwe now need to beat Amaglug-glug by three clear goals in the return leg, set for Rufaro in a fortnight, to book a ticket to the continental games in Mozambique.
And they will have to do without some of their key men with chief striker Simba Sithole unlikely to be available for the July 9 clash as Mamelodi Sundowns will be in the middle of their pre-season camp.
The bustling Mathew Rusike, the only Zimbabwean to trouble Amaglug-glug goalkeeper Boalefa Pule, leaves for England tomorrow for trials with Barclays Premiership side Bolton Wanderers while Abbas Amidu will be heading for Sweden.
Amidu, whose contract with Black Mambas expires next month, has been invited for trials by several Swedish top flight clubs.
Indications are that Archford Gutu, whose was barred from taking to the field on Saturday after it emerged that contrary to the line towed by Zifa, and the mainstream media, the Dynamos man was still serving a suspension earned from a red card he picked up away to Botswana, will also be club hunting in Europe during the weekend the Young Warriors welcome their southern neighbours.
Skipper Qadr Amini could also miss the return leg as he inches closer to joining Orlando Pirates while defensive midfielder Devon Chafa is ineligible after being red-carded by Botswana referee Joshua Bondo for a nasty tackle into the groin of Bongolethu Jayiya.
Chafa’s dismissal continued a poor disciplinary record for the Dynamos players in the Young Warriors’ colours after Gutu and Denver Mukamba were also sent off in Botswana.
Getting to Mozambique will require a Herculean effort from a Young Warriors outfit that was so off colour one would have been forgiven for thinking that Amini and his lieutenants were playing under protest.
Phiri’s boys might have genuine grievances, among them the late payment of their bonuses, the quality of food they ate during their two-week camp at the Zifa Village and the last minute arrival that deprived them of a chance to acclimatise to the biting temperatures the South African winter is synonymous with.
But none of the issues they are raising can be used as defence for their insipid show against a predictable Amaglug-glug.
With Sithole deployed as a lone striker the Young Warriors, who employed a 4-5-1 formation, needed to move in quickly to latch on to the second ball but the central midfield trio of Chafa, Amidu and Timire Mamvura appeared allergic to going forward.
Consequently the Mamelodi Sundowns new boy found himself between a rock and a hard place as the home side’s central defensive pair of Gladwin Shitolo and Thamsanga Sangweni were unyielding all afternoon.
Defensively the Young Warriors were poor but in goalkeeper Ariel Sibanda they had a man in form. Sibanda kept Zimbabwe in the game with some top drawer saves but there was nothing he could do about Lincoln Zvasiya’s inexcusable back header that set up Ndulula for his and Amaglug-glug’s first of the afternoon on 38 minutes.
“The type of goal as well as the time we conceded it threw our plans into disarray.
“With 38 minutes played our intention was to go for half-time still on level terms before pushing Mathew forward so as to put pressure on the South African back four who were having it easy as Simba was alone upfront.
“The loss of Zvasiya through injury robbed us of an attacking substitution while the second goal we conceded was a result of poor marking,” was Young Warriors assistant coach Darlington Dodo’s assessment.
For South Africa, the 2-0 victory edged them closer to a competition their coach Ephraim “Shakes” Mashaba strongly believes they are good enough to win.
“We could have made it much easier for us by scoring more goals but over elaboration and some shocking shooting cost us.
“However, I must say this is a good result but we won’t be celebrating it for long as we will be starting our preparations for the return leg in earnest,” Mashaba told The Herald in a post match interview.
Meanwhile, the Young Warriors were expected back home last night.