ZPC Kariba Football Club
ZPC Kariba Football Club is a local Club based in Kariba which plies its trade in the local premiership. The club enjoyed a fairytale run in the league and almost clinched the league title during their maiden season only to give it away to Dynamos Football Club on the final match day when they only needed a draw against CAPS United Football Club to lift the title. The Club is owned and sponsored by Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority.
Background
The Club was promoted into the top flight league at the end of the 2013 Eastern Region Division one league season after they were crowned champions.[1]
Fairytale Run During the Maiden Season
Although the boys from Kariba had been labelled underdogs when the 2014 league season kicked off, they proved to be a surprise package by showing high levels of consistency and discipline. The team did not have a home ground of their own in Kariba which met PSL regulations so they were forced to use Gwanzura Stadium as their home ground effectively meaning that they had to travel long distances whether they were playing a home or an away fixture.[1] The club managed to settle into the top flight league quite well by signing players which had previous premier league experience such as former CAPS United hitman Limited Chikafa, Norman Togara, Tawanda Munyanduri, Moses Makanje and David Radiyoni. Apart from these veterans playing a crucial role in the fine run that ZPC Kariba enjoyed, newcomers such as Dennis Dauda and Tendai Hove proved to be key players for the club with Dauda being a solid defender while Tendai Hove carved a reputation for making spectacular saves throughout the season. The whole team was a solid unit which managed to cause several upsets in the league defeating more experienced teams.
Final Match Day Drama
With one game to go in the league, the boys from Kariba were two points ahead of their title rivals Dembare and were just in need of at least a draw to walk away with the league title. While many had conceded that the Kariba boys had already clinched the title, they crumbled in spectacular fashion to lose 3-2 to a CAPS United team that had struggled to put up a decent performance all season.[2] While ZPC Kariba was crumbling Dynamos who were banking on ZPC faltering managed to beat their opponents to lift the league title for a record fourth consecutive time. ZPC was tipped by many tipped by so any people to emerge triumphant because before their final match day defeat to Makepekepe, they had not lost a match in Harare throughout the season.[2]
Team Achievements
- PSL Runners up (2014)
In due recognition of the impressive performance that ZPC had displayed throughout the season, they managed to scoop almost all of the top awards at the 2014 Castle Larger Award Ceremony. Their captain and defender Dauda was named Soccer Star of the year while fellow teammates Tendai Hove and Limited Chikafa were named first and second runners up respectively. Their coach Saul Chaminuka was also named coach of the year. There were nonetheless cries of foul play from certain sections of the media that although the boys from Kariba had had a blinder of a season, it did not make much sense that Saul Chaminuka was named coach of the year ahead of Callisto Pasuwa despite not winning any trophy while Psuwa had emerged triuphant in the domestic league a record four times.
Departure of Key Players
In similar fashion to the fate suffered by most premier league debutants, ZPC Kariba lost some of their key players during the 2015 pre season to other teams that were offering better remuneration and opportunities.One such player to have left ZPC Kariba was Dennis Dauda who left to join Harare City. The club was also said too have been battlingg to retain the services of Pride Tafirenyika who had been linked with a move to Dembare.[3] Obey Mwerahari was also reported to have left the club together with Ephraim Mwinga, Peter Muzondo and Limited Chikafa.[3] Apart from losing key players, the club was also said to have lost Tembo Chuma who was part of the coaching staff.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Brian Nkiwane Hove — The man behind ZPC Kariba’s success story, The Standard, Published: June 29, 2014, Retrieved: January 27, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 CAPS deny ZPC Kariba league Title, Spuersport, November 23, 2014, Retrieved: January 27, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Michael Madyira Dauda ditches ZPC Kariba, The Standard, Published: January 25, 2015, Retrieved: January 27, 2015
