Bosso beat DeMbare 5-3 on penalties to retain Independence Cup

Bulawayo giants Highlanders Football Club were crowned champions of the President’s Independence Cup for the second successive time after beating their rivals Dynamos 5-3 on penalties at Mt Darwin High School on Tuesday.

Bosso were reduced to 10-men in the 31st minute when defender Andrew Mbeba was shown a straight red card for a brutal tackle on Nyasha Chintuli.

Despite the numerical advantage, the Glamour Boys who seemed to have no strategy on how to penetrate the solid Bosso defense, failed to capitalise on it.

After Mbeba was sent off, Portuguese tactician Baltemar Brito made some good tactical changes in the second, one noticeable one was that of the roving left footed full back Archford Faira whose pace helped the Bosso defense offensively and defensively.

His ability to attack and recover in time helped Amahlolanyama to hold on to a 0-0 draw despite being a man down.

Dynamos had a good first half with the pint sized Tanaka ‘Kante’ Shandirwa dominating and dictating the pace of the game in the middle of the park.

However, the Herbert Maruwa coached side came back from the break a different side after the former Black Rhinos gaffer withdrew Shandirwa.

Maruwa decided to replace Shandirwa with forward Elie Lunga, probably sensing danger he could be sent off after he had accumulated a yellow card.

The decision changed the complexion of the match, at the end of the day, the gamble failed to pay off

Reacting to the win, said Brito: “I’m happy to win my first silverware in the country, it means a lot for the entire technical team and the fans who travelled all the way from Bulawayo.

“Mbeba made a mistake and his teammates accepted it and fought for the club to win this trophy. They (boys) played well. I’m happy with how we managed the game. The boys were just confident and I think they deserve it.”

Despite the defeat, Maruwa believes his team played well: “We did well in all the departments but our strikers let us down,” he said.

“They missed a lot of changes and in football you can only win by scoring goals and that’s what we failed to do.

“But, overall, I’m happy with how the boys played, it’s only the final third where we need to be more ruthless.”