The Sunday News
Dumisani Nsingo, Senior Reporter
MEDIA entrepreneur Munyaradzi Hwengwere said FC Platinum’s recent performances at Caf Champions League have exhibited its tenacity to compete at the same level with the continental powerhouses.
Hwengwere said FC Platinum have managed to prove to all and sundry that it deserves to be counted among the big boys on the African continent.
“The team’s performance on the continental show piece has tremendously improved because we previously lost to Young Africans and an Angolan side by margins as high as five goals. So from where we are coming from we are now much of a solid team,” he said.
Hwengwere is the chairman of Zvishavane based radio station YAFM, which has been part of the local media covering Pure Platinum’s matches on the African jamboree.
On their maiden appearance in the continental show piece in 2015 Pure Platinum was drubbed 5-1 in the first leg of the Caf Confederation Cup first round by Young Africans of Tanzania away and went on to win the reserve fixture 1-0 at home to exit 5-2 on aggregate.
Last year the Zvishavane based side were booted out of the Caf Champions League second leg preliminaries by Angolan side Angolan side Clube Desportivo Primeiro de Agosto 5-1 on aggregate after being handed a 3-0 drubbing away and later suffering a 1-2 loss at home.
Pure Platinum who have qualified for the group stage of the Caf Champions League on their second attempted managed to hold South African giants and 1995 winners Orlando Pirates nil all at home at Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo but were bravely beaten 2-0 by the defending champions Esperance in Tunisia, in a match the Zimbabwean champions could have managed a share of the spoils.
“What FC Platinum need to do now is to beat the teams they are going to meet at home and at least pull out a draw or even win at Orlando and they qualify to the next stage,” said Hwengwere.
The other team in the same group with Pure Platinum Play is Guinea’s Horoya. Two teams from each of the four groups progress to the quarter-final stage of the competition.
Orland Pirates currently lead Group B on four points, the same as Esperance but have a better goal difference.
— @DNsingo
