Warriors fall in Yaoundé FILE PICTURE: Terrence Dzvukamanja (second from left) was on target for Zimbabwe in Yaoundé yesterday

Zimpapers Sports Hub

Cameroon 2-1 Zimbabwe

Refereee spoils Warriors fight

THE Warriors put up a strong fight in a valiant battle against Cameroon, only to be robbed of a well-deserved point by a controversial call from Burundian referee Pacifique Ndabihawenimana, in their last Group J Afcon 2025 qualifier yesterday.

The Indomitable Lions’ Ahmadou Ahidjo football fortress in Yaoundé witnessed its fair share of action with Zimbabwean fans left fuming over the decision to strike off Terrence Dzvukamanja’s dramatic added-time equaliser for an alleged offside infringement, despite television replays showing no clear evidence of it.

The Warriors were strong contenders and could have secured a draw if not for the disallowed goal. The South African-based forward, Dzvukamanja, had already hit one back for the Warriors in the 73rd minute, proving himself a force to be reckoned with.

Unfortunately, the Warriors eventually lost the game, with two first-half goals by the Indomitable Lions’ captain Vincent Aboubakar and George-Kevin N’Koudou sealing the deal. Nonetheless, Ndabihawenimana’s poor offside decision cannot be overlooked as neither the ball supplier Jordan Zemura nor the scorer was in an offside position.

Both Cameroon and Zimbabwe had already qualified for the Afcon finals, making the game a dead rubber.
Warriors coach Michael Nees, was undoubtedly satisfied with his team’s performance, with their second-half showing indicating significant improvement. Despite Cameroon’s unbeaten record at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium for 52 years, Nees believes that the Indomitable Lions are beatable on their home turf.

The Warriors had a subdued first-half performance that Nees attributed to fatigue, but with better planning and execution, Zimbabwe could have emerged victorious.

“We played a match on Friday evening, we travelled 35 hours, we had no training sessions until yesterday before the match, not even a recovery session and it was only clear that our players had tired legs,” said Nees.

Warriors coach, Michael Nees

“We were not only physically but also mentally not in the game in the first half. We were a bit sleepy. Communication was not good, the sun was hot and the humidity but in the second half, we really showed a different character.

“The players had a big character and they wanted to show that they can play football and challenge Cameroon and I think at the end we deserved a draw. I think five more minutes, we could have scored,” said Nees.

Zimbabwe made a slow start, which cost them two goals due to defensive frailties after the defenders went to sleep in a five-minute blitz.

Khama Billiat

Cameroon forward, Aboubakar, made his way through the middle and created enough space for himself to unleash a rising shot that beat goalkeeper Washington Arubi after 18 minutes.

Before the Warriors could re-organise themselves, N’Koudou doubled Cameroon’s lead after beating Godknows Murwira in the box and sliced the ball past partially obscured goalkeeper Arubi, in the 23rd minute.

But Arubi did well to keep the home side at bay with a string of top-drawer saves in both halves.

Although Zimbabwe did not have as many chances at goal as Cameroon, striker Douglas Mapfumo missed an opportunity early on after receiving a pass from Khama Billiat inside the box.

Billiat himself also failed to convert a good ball in the box from Tawanda Maswanhise as the first half drew to a close. However, the Warriors returned for the second half as an improved side and mounted a series of attacks against the hosts.
To turn the game around, coach Nees made a double substitution, bringing on goal scorer Dzvukamanja and Prince Dube with 30 minutes remaining.

Dzvukamanja showed his intentions when he unleashed a shot that narrowly missed the upright, but he was more clinical the second time around, pulling one back with a first-time shot that beat Cameroon goalkeeper Andre Onana, after receiving a pass from Zemura.

The Warriors continued to push for the equaliser but Dzvukamanja hit the upright with Onana beaten moments before goalkeeper Arubi made a big save in the 88th minute by blocking Jean Charles Castelletto’s shot.

Billiat had a chance to punish Onana but his shot missed the target with the goalkeeper frantically retreating. In the end, Zimbabwe had reason to feel aggrieved when Dzvukamanja’s close-range effort was disallowed for offside.

This was the first defeat for Zimbabwe in this campaign, having drawn against Cameroon in the first leg and winning against Namibia while drawing twice against Kenya. Nevertheless, Zimbabwe finished second in Group J with nine points, behind unbeaten Cameroon who finished on 14 points.

Both teams qualified for next year’s Afcon, ahead of Kenya on six points and Namibia on two.

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