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Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter

HIGHLANDERS Football Club’s executive committee is expected to decide if they will review the gate charges for their first match this season against Dynamos at Barbourfields Stadium.

Bosso and DeMbare face off in the first leg of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League match on Saturday.

Both sides have had a good start to the season, with their opening matches drawing good crowds, setting the tone for a bigger attendance when they meet in Bulawayo.

Despite the good results that the country’s traditional giants have posted in their matches, another factor that has contributed to an increase in the number of fans attending the matches involving Highlanders and Dynamos so far has been reduction of gate charges.

The league’s board of governors agreed to have the lowest ticket pegged at US$2 from US$3 last season.

However, for “big” games such as the Highlanders-Dynamos, or the Match Day Seven battle of the capital between Caps United and Dynamos, the PSL bosses agreed that the minimum charge for rest of the ground be pegged at US$3.

Kudzai Bare, PSL communications and media liaison officer,  said clubs are allowed to make an application to raise gate charges even beyond the US$3 that was agreed on for big games.

Asked if Highlanders, who had a paying crowd of 11 046 when they beat FC Platinum to end a nine-year winless jinx against the champions had applied for a review of gate charges for the epic Dynamos encounter, Bare said: “Presently, the only application that we have received from a club requesting to increase their gate charges is that of Caps United who will be playing against Dynamos on Match Day 7.” 

She said the league set US$3 as the minimum charge for high-profile games, but clubs can request for higher than that.

“We haven’t received a request from Highlanders to raise gate charges, meaning that charges for their game against Dynamos will be US$3 the rest of the ground,” said Bare.

Castle Lager Premier Soccer League

In their application, Caps United wants the cheapest ticket for the Dynamos game to be US$5.

Another big crowd attended the Chicken Inn-Highlanders game, with about 11 000 people paying their way to watch the Bulawayo derby which ended 0-0 at Barbourfields Stadium on Good Friday.

It is likely that a bigger crowd will attend the Highlanders and Dynamos encounter.

Highlanders’ fans have made it fashionable to watch Bosso in action at Barbourfields.

An impeccable source within Highlanders said: “The executive will have its weekly review and planning meeting either on Monday or Tuesday and are likely to deliberate on the gate charges. This is a big game and in the past the club has increased the gate charges to boost revenue,” said the source. — @ZililoR