Injured Mapemba out of Warriors squad
By Petros Kausiyo
ANOTHER day for the Warriors, another withdrawal and another addition. The Zimbabwe team to face Egypt in a World Cup African Zone Group G qualifier in Alexandria continues to keep changing by the day.
The Warriors are expected to fly out to Alexandria to tomorrow on a trip that will take them through Addis Ababa in Ethiopia and the Egyptian capital Cairo for their showdown with the Pharaohs next Tuesday.
Five-time African champions Egypt lead the group standings with six points from two matches while the Warriors, still chasing their first win in this campaign that got off to a horrible start last year, are a distant third and four points behind.
The Warriors will make the long trip to Egypt knowing that they face another daunting task to try and secure that seemingly elusive win and the build up to the March 26 encounter has not been helped by the fact that interim coach, Klaus Dieter Pagels, has had to chop and change his 18-man side that will do duty in Alexandria after his initial team was hit by injuries.
Just when he had hoped that he would not be affected by more injuries, Pagels was yesterday forced to draft in Highlanders forward Masimba Mambare after Moroka Swallows defender Gilbert Mapemba withdrew from the Warriors side.
Mapemba, who had been the first choice standby player, had been called in as a replacement for Denmark-based winger Quincy Antipas has also been ruled out by injury.
The Moroka Swallows defender, who played in a central defensive role in the Warriors’ first game under Pagels — a friendly match against Botswana at Rufaro on February 6 — has been sidelined by a knee injury.
While Mapemba has already played for Pagels’ new-look Warriors, Antipas is still to feature in the national team under the tall German coach having also been ruled out of their 2-1 win over the Zebras because of injury. Antipas reportedly confirmed over the weekend after a discussion with Pagels that he would not be available to feature for the Warriors because of a recurrent Achilles problem.
The injury to the former Motor Action forward then forced Pagels to turn to Mapemba, in a move that also meant that the coach would make some tactical switches to his game plan. But just a day after being drafted in, Mapemba yesterday contacted Warriors team manager Shariff Mussa indicating that he would not be able to take part in the game against Egypt, similarly because of injury.
“It is a pity that the man we had asked to come in as a replacement for Quincy Antipas, Gilbert Mapemba has also reported that he is not fully fit after receiving a knock on his knee while at his club Moroka Swallows.
“I spoke to him this morning (yesterday) and he said he had initially hoped that the knock on his knee was not anything serious.
“However, further checks with the team doctor have revealed that it is actually a more serious knock and the player says with the kind of pain he is feeling in the knee, he doesn’t think he will be 100 percent ready for the game and it is a pity that injuries are challenges that you often come across in this game.
“I have since contacted Masimba Mambare, who is the next in line of those on standby ,and he is now getting ready to travel with the team,’’ Mussa said.
The seemingly never-ending tale of injuries that are afflicting the Warriors have left rookie midfielder, Nicholas Guyo of Harare province Division Two outfit Manhingi FC, on the verge of playing his first competitive match for the senior team.
If that happens, that would be the first time that a local Division Two player has played for the Warriors in a World Cup qualifier with previous national teams having been dominated by Premiership players and on rare occasions as was the case with former Black Aces midfielder Mike “Dread’’ Madzivanyika, someone plying his trade in Division One.
Mussa said they were still making frantic efforts to contact the Dynamos officials and check on the fitness levels of the Glamour Boys’ defensive trio of Partson Jaure, Ocean Mushure and Augustine Mbara.
Jaure, Mushure and Mbara featured for Dynamos in their Champions League first round, first leg tie against Club Athletic Bizertin in Tunisia on Sunday, albeit on a 3-0 losing cause and flew back home with the rest of the DeMbare delegation last night.
Initial indications after the team touched down at Harare International airport, however, were that the three players emerged from their bruising battle against Club Bizertin unscathed.
The Warriors first lost Kaizer Chiefs striker Matthew Rusike through injury with Pagels naming Ajax Cape Town winger Tafadzwa Rusike as a replacement.
No sooner had Matthew (Rusike) been ruled out than another striker — SuperSport United’s Simba Sithole — followed suit in the sick bay after picking up an injury and forcing the coach to recall Belgium-based midfield playmaker Ovidy Karuru. The Herald
Warriors team:
Washington Arubi, Maxwell Nyamupangedengu, Hardlife Zvirekwi, Partson Jaure, Denver Mukamba, Ocean Mushure, Archieford Gutu, Masimba Mambare ,Silas Songani, Abbas Amidu, Ronald Chitiyo, Khama Billiat, Knowledge Musona, Roderick Mutuma, Lincoln Zvasiya, Augustine Mbara, Tafadzwa Rusike.
