The Sunday News
Mehluli Sibanda, Senior Sports Reporter
HIS debut season at Azam might have been punctuated by injuries yet Zimbabwean striker, Prince Dube is gunning for the Golden Boot in the Vodacom Tanzania Mainland Premier League.
With seven matches left for Azam, Dube is the joint top scorer in the Tanzanian Premier League with 11 goals, the same as Meddie Kagere of Simba Sports Club. Kagere, a Rwandan national has won the Golden Boot in Tanzania’s top league for two seasons in a row and is looking at making it three on the trot. The 34-year-old former Gor Mahia striker scored 22 goals last season having found the target 23 times in the period 2018/19.
Ivorian Kipre Tchetche was the last Azam player to win the league’s Golden Boot when he netted 17 goals in the 2012/13 season to help the team finish second. Kagere will not have it easy this season with Dube very much in the race for the top scorer’s award. Dube was on target on Thursday when Azam secured a 2-2 away against Dodoma, with the other goal for the Chamazi Millionaires coming from former FC Platinum striker Obrey Chirwa.
The Warriors striker now has 11 goals and six assists in the league for third placed Azam. What gives Dube an advantage over Kagere is that the Zimbabwean is Azam’s first choice striker and penalty taker. Kagere on the other hand has been relegated to second choice striker behind Chris Mugalu.
John Bocco of Simba is in 10 goals, with the Azam duo of Idd Seleman and Ayoub Lyanga both on eight.
Last season, the leading top scorer for Azam in the league was Chirwa with 12 goals. It has not been a smooth season for Dube since he joined the Tanzania free spenders from Highlanders in August last year.
Dube was sidelined for six weeks after he fell and broke an ulna bone on his left forearm in a Tanzania Mainland Premier League clash with Young Africans played at the Azam Complex Stadium in November last year.
Azam sent the Warriors striker to the Vincent Pallotti Hospital in Cape Town South Africa for treatment. Dube underwent a successful operation on his forearm at the beginning of December and made a return to action in January.
It will be a huge achievement for Dube if he wins the Golden Boot and that might show national team coach Zdravko Logarusic just how good he is since the Croatian believes he is a playing in a smaller league.
Dube has opportunity to add to his goal tally when Azam face Young Sports Club away at the Benjamin Mkapa Stadium this evening. — @Mdawini_29.
