By Eddie Chikamhi
Dynamos 1…………….Shooting Stars 0
DYNAMOS ended a three-match lean spell when they overcame basement side Shooting Stars with Lloyd Mutasa’s under-pressure Harare giants needing a first half penalty to dismiss the Wild Boys in a lukewarm Castle Lager Premier Soccer League match at Rufaro on Sunday.
Defensive midfielder Devon Chafa , who had a fine day, converted from the spot in the 41st minute to help DeMbare notch their fourth win of the season. Dynamos came into the game under immense pressure to stem a run of poor form and a massive victory by bitter city rivals CAPS United who thrashed Kiglon 5-1 at the same venue the previous day only served to increase the tide of pressure on Mutasa.
But DeMbare will, at the moment, not be worried about the margin of their win as the victory helped them scale three places up the ladder and bounce back into the top eight. They are now seventh on the table with 16 points from 11 games while Shooting Stars are still languishing at the basement after suffering their ninth defeat.
Mutasa welcomed the three points, which came as great relief following the goalless draws against Gunners and Shabanie Mine. The draws were preceded by a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Zimbabwe Saints as Dynamos had only managed two points in their last three matches. Despite being relieved about the return to winning ways, Mutasa revealed that he was not satisfied happy about his team’s showing.
“We tend to lack precision in front of goal. It’s a problem we are attending to but today we played in phases probably because the team had not won in the last three matches. At times you would need to push hard for results,” said Mutasa.
Shooting Stars choked DeMbare’s movement in the midfield and fought for every ball although chances were few and far between at both ends of the goal. Gift Bello was outstanding in the Dynamos defence and appeared the more reliable of the DeMbare centrebacks as his partner George Magariro was clearly not at his usual best.
Dynamos missed the services of creative midfielder Denver Mukamba through injury and Mutasa, eager to have flair in his midfield, started with Archieford Gutu who returned from trials in Bulgaria on Friday. Gutu, who teamed up well with Tawanda Muparati, was a worthy inclusion as the duo helped hold the midfield together in the initial stages before running out of steam as the game wore on.
Gutu, however, could not last the whole match as he was pulled out due to injury in the 79th minute and was replaced by skipper Desmond Maringwa. Shooting Stars had the first real attempt on goal in the 15th minute when their captain Elliot Matsika won possession inside the DeMbare half and released James Chitereki inside the box but goalkeeper Washington Arubi was equal to the task to save a grounder from the Wild Boys’ striker.
But Dynamos’ Nicholas Alifandika had a better chance two minutes later when he beat an off-side trap, only to be let down by his first touch before the Wild Boys cleared their lines. Alifandika also came close in the 23rd minute after being set up by Roderick Mutuma but was denied by the post.
Mutuma then had the ball in the back of the net in the 37th minute but his celebrations were cut short as near side assistant referee Cosmas Chafa had his flag up for off-side.
But DeMbare got the upper hand just before the breather when referee Pilani Ncube pointed to the spot following an awkward challenge on striker Martin Vengesai by defender Tongai Chioreso inside the box. Chafa stepped up and slotted home the resultant penalty.
With Dynamos, who were the home team yesterday, struggling to take control of the match Mutasa pulled out Alifandika at the restart and threw into the fray Patrick Khumbula.
But it appeared DeMbare’s momentum upfront was compromised by the substitution of Mutuma, as his replacement Murape Murape tended to play too deep, leaving Khumbula to fight lone battles against a resolute defence marshaled by Zimbabwe youth international Charles Mutero and Tofirei Sambo. Wild Boys coach Partson Ndabambi felt that his charges played well despite losing the match, and argued that the penalty made the difference.
“I think our game plan worked because we had wanted to deprive Dynamos of room to play the ball but, unfortunately, we conceded a penalty that eventually made the difference. Otherwise we played well and we matched them man for man. We are at the same level with Dynamos. The only difference between us probably is that they have a big fan base. They thrive on the support of the crowds and that is why we had planned to close them off,” said Ndabambi.
Teams:
Dynamos: W. Arubi, T. Mamvura, A. Mbara, G. Bello, G. Magariro, D. Chafa, T. Muparati, A. Gutu (D. Maringwa 79th minute), R. Mutuma (M. Murape 57th minute), M. Vengesai, N. Alifandika (P. Khumbula 46th minute)
Shooting Stars: G. Brown, T. Mazunze, T. Chioreso, T. Sambo, C. Mutero, T. Chipunza (B. Tembo 70th minute), M. Muneri, S. Chihota (A. Mudukuti 64th minute), S. Gadzikwa (J. Sinzi 87th minute), E. Matsika, J. Chitereki.
