The Sunday News
Ishemunyoro Chingwere
Flame Lily . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .(1) 2
Chapungu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . (0) 1
Flame Lilly coach Backlyfield Chivenga finally registered his first Castle Lager Premier Soccer League win when his charges dispatched 10-man Chapungu in an incident filled encounter played at Larfage yesterday. James Chivasa and Virimai Mukudo scored for the hosts in the fifth and 82nd minute respectively, while the visitors’ solitary strike came from former Dynamos striker Allan Tavarwisa four minutes before fulltime.
However, Chivenga’s first full set of three points did not come without incident as Chapungu had to finish the match a man down after Patrick Khumbula was given marching orders eight minutes after the hour mark for a second bookable offence by referee Nomore Musundire.
Musundire also irked Chapungu, who accused the whistle man of unsporting behaviour for allegedly telling the visitors’ team manager Dumisani Mufudze that he will “make sure” the airmen leave Larfage empty handed.
The visitors’ dreadful afternoon was then summed up when their medic Owen Gawe was also ejected from the technical bench.
“It was not a level playing field for us today,” lamented gaffer John Nyikadzino, “First the pitch was very bumpy and that made it difficult for us to play our normal game.
“The referee did not make it any easy for us with many of his questionable calls and to make matters worse, he even told our manager (Mufudze) that he was going to make sure that we lose,” said Nyikadzino.
His counterpart Chivenga was, however, not keen on the controversy and said the win, which came after he led the relegation threatened prison guards to six draws and a defeat to Caps United, was a culmination of hard work and an indicator of better things to come.
“It feels good to win. We never gave up and kept on working hard for victories,” said Chivenga.
“Now that a win has finally arrived, this might be the beginning of better things to come for us,” he said.
The win took Flame Lily’s points tally to 18 and more importantly saw them jump out of the drop zone and onto position 11.
For Chapungu, however, yesterday’s defeat took their winless streak to nine matches, something that should worry Nyikadzino despite his charges being eight points above the drop zone.
