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Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter

THE heavy rains that pounded the National Sports Stadium on Saturday, forcing the Cranborne Bullets vs Ngezi Platinum Stars Chibuku Super Cup semi-final to be played on a water-logged pitch for the remaining 20 minutes, gave a glimpse of the country’s stadia crisis.

Zifa has in the past raised concerns about the country’s football facilities which have now all been condemned and banned from staging international matches by Caf.

However, Zifa’s First Instance body provisionally cleared Barbourfields, Luveve, Gibbo, Baobab, Nyamhunga, Ascot, Sakubva, Mandava and the National Sports Stadium to host Premier soccer League matches.

The FIB is the local club licensing agents under the Caf Club Licensing system.

With the PSL programme spilling into next year, it means matches will be played during the rainy season and that will further expose the country’s poor state of stadia facilities, especially the drainage system.

The waterlogged National Sports stadium made it difficult for both teams to play normal football, as the field turned into several puddles endangering players.

Cranborne lost the match 1-0 and on Sunday, the National Sports Stadium pitch was in a better position as rain spared Harare and ensured Dynamos and FC Platinum played on a good surface.

Cranborne Bullets coach Nesbert Saruchera felt referee Martin Chivandire should have called off the match.

“When it started raining, the pitch became unplayable and I thought the match officials were going to stop the game, but they didn’t,” Saruchera told our Harare Bureau.

Ngezi’s Rodwell Dhlakama equated the last 20 minutes of the match to “a game of water polo”.

“It was very difficult to play the match. It was like we were playing water polo. The ball was not moving, but again it was good for us as we had already scored,” Dhlakama said.

PSL clubs should brace for more conditions like the waterlogged pitch the country’s biggest stadium became as well as mud surfaces at other stadia even days after rain stops.

In the 1990s, the PSL led by the late Morrison Sifelani and Chris Sibanda pushed local football to align with the international calendar, but the same poor facilities, which have further degenerated, halted their plans.

Meanwhile, the PSL has rescheduled matchday two fixtures to Friday following cancellation of the games when the suspended Zifa board attempted to hold the country’s football to ransom by withdrawing referees last week.

The Cranborne vs Bulawayo Chiefs match that was previously slated for Mutare will now be played at the National Sports Stadium. The following day, the same venue plays host to the Herentals vs Black Rhinos game. On Sunday, Caps United will square off with Harare City.

Matchday two rescheduled fixtures
Friday, November 26: Cranborne Bullets v Bulawayo Chiefs (National Sports Stadium)
Saturday, November 27: FC Platinum v Chicken Inn (Mandava), Yadah v ZPC Kariba (Baobab), Herentals v Black Rhinos (National Sports Stadium), Bulawayo City v Manica Diamonds (Barbourfields), Tenax CS v Whawha (Sakubva)

Sunday, November 28: Highlanders v Ngezi Platinum Stars (Barbourfields), Triangle United v Dynamos (Gibbo), Caps United v Harare City (National Sports Stadium)
— @ZililoR