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Sikhumbuzo Moyo Senior Sports Reporter
IT never rains but pours for Hwange Football Club after three of their key players, two of them defenders, have been ruled out of tomorrow’s home Castle Lager Premiership encounter against Flame Lily.

The three players, left back Munyaradzi Mungadze, central defender Gerald Ndlovu, who is also the club captain, and free scoring Evans Rusike are part of seven players that will not see action this weekend after accumulating three yellow cards each.

“Please note that the player(s) listed hereunder have each accumulated three yellow cards and will be suspended for one match respectively.

The said player(s) shall not participate in their club’s match day nine of the Castle Lager League matches scheduled for the 9th to 10th May 2015,” said the PSL in a communiqué.

The other four players are Tawanda Munyanduri (ZPC Kariba), Kudzai Chideu (Dongo Sawmills), Nelson Tachi (How Mine) and Paradzai Chidawaya (Flame Lily).

It is Hwange though who are most certainly going to miss their suspended players as they seek to register their first win of the season, having drawn an incredible six matches and lost two.

“We’ll definitely miss the trio, they’re our key players and it now means we’ve to throw in three new players against Flame Lily and that’s not an easy task,” said Hwange coach Nation Dube.

Dube said the new players might also not combine well with each other moreso that their training got limited because of the strenuous travelling.

“Nevertheless it’s an opportunity for the guys that we’ll throw in to prove their mettle,” said Dube.

On his team’s performance so far, Dube said while their supporters have all the right to be concerned, the season was still in its infancy and soon, they will turn the corner.

“This is a passing phase, we’re doing everything required to win matches but it’s only that lady luck hasn’t been on our side. Soon and very soon we’ll turn the corner,” he said.

He described tomorrow’s match as a very tight game because Flame lily would not want to be the first side to lose to Hwange.

“They might have lost to Highlanders but that doesn’t make them punch bags, they’ve obviously done their remedial work and underrating them will be suicidal to us. I’m sure they wouldn’t want to be the first team to lose to us too but we’re naturally eager to collect our first set of maximum points,” said Dube who is also the Under-23 and Warriors’ assistant coach.

In another match, straight from being well and truly beaten, How Mine take on league debutants Tsholotsho, themselves winless in their last two matches, at Luveve Stadium knowing that a loss might not be well received in the gold miners’ boardroom.

Luke Masomere, the gold miners’ controversial coach, played some mind games before the FC Platinum match but the platinum miners who never paid much attention to it, instead chose to speak on the field of play and dutifully beat How Mine 3-0. For a team that had, a few days prior to the trip to the Midlands, mercilessly clobbered Whawha 6-0, the loss to FC Platinum came as a huge surprise.

Odds are also heavily staked against How Mine at Luveve Stadium where they are not only yet to win but to score as well.

Iziqholo ZeZhwane too need to win or at least get a point from today’s encounter if their belief and confidence need to be maintained. As said by the Minister of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services Jonathan Moyo, project Tsholotsho must not fail.

Hundreds of villagers back home in Tsholotsho still dream of the day they will see the likes of Kelvin Kaindu leading Triangle and giants Dynamos at Tsholotsho Stadium but if the team gets relegated, that dream will remain as such.

Tsholotsho succumbed to a cruel 0-1 defeat to Chapungu on Wednesday at White City Stadium, that coming after a 0-3 drubbing by FC Platinum on Sunday.