Fungai Muderere, Senior Sports Reporter
EIGHTEEN teams, nine matches each week, 306 matches altogether and it’s all over!
The 2024 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season ends today with Highlanders set to take on Yadah Stars deep in the bowels of Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo.
It is a game that will naturally see focus turn on Bosso striker Lynoth Chikuhwa and Yadah Stars’ Khama Billiat in their fight for the Golden Boot Award on the last day of the season.
Sonjy, as Chikuhwa is fondly known, is on 16 goals, three ahead of Billiat. Question: With odds greatly favouring the former to scoop the award, will Billiat be able to conjure his magic and overtake the Bosso forward?
Answer: Only time will tell after the final whistle at Emagumeni as the stage is set for a thrilling showdown between the two players. Billiat will have to score a hat-trick plus today to outshine the Bosso forward.
“It is not easy in modern-day football to score 16 goals. He (Chikuhwa) can even score more as there is still a game for him to consolidate his finishing as the leading goalscorer. He has been outstanding in terms of scoring goals.
“Lynoth has been quite instrumental for us to be where we are. Even if you look at the goals that we scored, I think we had the best striking force. In the goals that we scored, I think he has contributed a lot where most of us were not giving him a chance.
“He could have scored two goals last season but I think for him to get to 16 this season it’s a plus. We just anticipate that he ends the season with one or two goals. At the beginning of the season, not many gave him a chance, but I think it’s the confidence that the technical team put in him,” said Bosso head coach Kelvin Kaindu.
On Billiat, the Zambian gaffer said: “He is a good player and a favourite of many. Most of the time when we play against them (Yadah), some people just come to watch an individual and if you give him room to play, he can display the qualities that he has got, but what we need to do is to focus on the game that we are playing and hope that we will be able to manage him.
Russell Chifura celebrates after scoring. (file photo)
“He is one of the most talented players in the league and maybe too good to be playing for our league. He is a very good player. We just hope that we have got enough players who can be assigned to monitor him.”
It will probably be Billiat’s debut at Barbourfields Stadium as he left the country in 2010 to join Ajax Cape Town in South Africa from Harare based Aces Youth Soccer Academy.
In 2016, the Warriors poster boy travelled with Mamelodi Sundowns to play Chicken Inn in the Caf Champions League match, but was not able to do duty because of an injury.
This year he returned to Zimbabwe to play for the Miracle Boys and he has featured against Chicken Inn, Arenel Movers and Bulawayo Chiefs at Luveve Stadium.
Caps United’s William Manondo is on 12 goals as the former Cup Kings face Ngezi Platinum Stars at Rufaro Stadium in their last game of the season this afternoon.
Today’s fixtures:
Highlanders v Yadah Stars (Barbourfields Stadium), CAPS United v Ngezi Platinum Stars (Rufaro)
— @FungaiMuderere
