Taurai Mangwiro

Background

Taurai Mangwiro was born on 14 April 1970 in Chimanimani. He is the second born in a family of 2 boys with elder brother Nyaro who is now late. He is married to Esnath Netsai Zenda and blessed with 3 children, Vimbai Patience, Anesu and Tanaka. He grew up in Mufakose together with his family and his brother was friends with former Dynamos captain Memory Mucherahowa whom they played together at Dynamos.

Education

He attended Gwinyiro Primary School for his primary education and Mufakose 2 High School for his secondary school education. He later attended Bondolfi Teachers College for his Teacher Training Course.

Career

Football Player

Taurai started playing football at a tender age and saw him break into the Gwinyiro Primary School first team when he was doing Grade 5, playing alongside his late elder brother Nyaro and Memory Mucherahowa. When he was doing Form 3 he also managed to break into the Mufakose 2 High School. He played for the Dynamos juniors in 1987 when he was doing form 4 and broke into the first team in 1989.

He managed to win 2 league championships with Dynamos in 1989 and 1991 before leaving with the likes of the late Biggie Zuze after the club was faced with squabbles that saw the club split. He later joined Rufaro Rovers in 1995 but only lasted for a year and at the end of 1995 he enrolled with Bondolfi Teachers College for a Teaching course. During this time he met the late Tanda Tavaruva (Mhunga) who lured him to join Masvingo United Football Club as a player. During the 1998/99 season, the team won promotion to Division 1 and he had to quit after the incoming coach, the late Lovemore Nyabeza thought he was old and he wanted to work with young players.

Coaching

He taught at Rujeko Primary School and coached the school team. Whilst he was teaching he managed to acquire Level 1 and 2 Coaching certificates. He was later called by Saul Chaminuka to assist him at Gutu Leopards the Masvingo United sister club and Saul left Gutu Leopards and Taurai was to be the head coach in 2005. He coached some of the notable players like Ovidy Karuru, Martin Vengesayi, and Hardlife Mavundi.

In 2006 he was called by the self-styled doctor of Zimbabwean football Luke Masomere to assist him at Masvingo United replacing Tavaka Gumbo. Midway through the season, Masomere secured a job with a Botswana club and this left Taurai assuming the head coach role. In 2008 he joined the Eastern Lions technical team after leaving Masvingo United and later on joined Monomotapa a club he was part of when they participated in the CAF Champions League where they reached the group stage of the competition working with Rodwell Dhlakama after Norman Mapeza had left after leading the team to their maiden Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League title. He was also the Zimbabwe national U17 head coach in 2008 and later joined Methembe Ndlovu in 2008 to be part of the technical team for the national U20 that won the U20 COSAFA championship with the likes of Khama Billiat and Knowledge Musona.

In 2010 he was the head coach at Monomotapa and worked with the likes of the late Biggie Zuze, Nkululeko Dlamini and Clayton Munemo. He was at Monomotapa till the mid-season of 2012 when he left and joined CAPS United Football Club till the end of 2014. In 2015 he joined Harare City Football Club where he won the 2015 Chibuku Super Cup and led the team in the CAF Confederation Cup before he left midway through the 2016 season and saw himself being appointed the ZIFA technical advisor.^[1]

He joined Triangle United in 2017 after he resigned as ZIFA technical advisor to replace David Mandigora as head coach.^[2]

In 2018 he led Triangle United Football Club to a fourth-place finish in the league and also won the Chibuku Super Cup which booked them a ticket to participate in the African Safari where they played in the CAF Confederation Cup. He is still with Triangle to date.

In 2011, Taurai was presented with his International German Football Federation (DBF) Level B coaching course certificate.

Mangwiro also paid tribute to Zifa’s German technical adviser Klaus Dieter Pagels and Zifa technical director Nelson Matongorere who facilitated the course and former Warriors and Moroka Swallows midfielder Edzai Kasinauyo, who donated sporting equipment for the coach’s use during the course.

The course covered areas like the development of football, tactics, training methodology, football methodology, individual team skills, demonstration lessons, sports medicine, laws of the game, match observations, club training observations and promotion of talent.^[3]

Mangwiro was unveiled by Botswana Premiership side, Orapa United FC, as the new head coach on 23 November 2022.

Mangwiro, whose coaching career spans 16 years which have seen him winning two Chibuku Super Cup trophies in the Zimbabwe top flight, will be expected to lead the Ostriches to their first league title since their formation.

He was left dejected after a career-low when his Harare City side was relegated from the top flight at the end of the 2021/22 season.

Orapa United Football Club

Mangwiro was unveiled by Botswana Premiership side, Orapa United FC, as the new head coach on 23 November 2022.^[4]

On 22 December 2023, Orapa United announced that they had parted ways with Mangwiro. He was fired after a poor start to the 2023/2024 Batswana Premier League season. His final game at the club was a 1-0 loss at home to Nico United.^[5]

Orapa United had only won three of their 12 league matches and were two points above the relegation zone.

Achievements

• Zimbabwe Premier Soccer League winner (1989, 1991 with Dynamos Football Club)
• Chibuku Super Cup winner (2015 with Harare City Football Club and 2018 with Triangle United Football Club)
• U20 Cosafa Cup (2008 with the Zimbabwe National U20 Team)
• Caf Elite Instructor^[6]

References