Caps United . . . . . . . . . . . (2)3 FC Platinum . . . . . . . . . . . (0)1
Buffaloes . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..(0)1 Harare City . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .0
Caps United continued their revival under manager Sean Connor with a brilliant show as they dismantled an out-of-sorts FC Platinum side in a Castle Lager Premier Soccer League match at the National Sports Stadium (NSS) yesterday.
It was also a day of dreams yesterday as new boys Buffaloes moved to third position after beating Harare City 1-0 at Rufaro Stadium for their fifth win of the season.
At the NSS, Rahman Kutsanzira scored two dazzling goals in both halves, and striker Washington Pakamisa weighed in with the third one as Caps produced their best performance of the season so far.
FC Platinum defender Norman Togara had brought some hope in his side when he headed home a corner kick to make the scores 2-1 some minutes after the halftime break, but a thunderous shot by Kutsanzira midway through the second half put the match to bed.
The visitors finished the match with 10 men after Togara was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Evans Gwekwerere.
The win took the Harare giants back into the elite top eight with 14 points while the Zvishavane side moved from third position to fourth with 15 points. Connor, who had become a very unpopular figure with the clubs supporters some few weeks ago, should be feeling very comfortable now.
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“It’s our biggest win so far and thankfully we achieved it with some really fantastic goals,” the visibly excited Connor said after the match. “We played well, kept our shape and discipline in the first half and reacted very well in the second half,” he added.
Platinum coach Rahman Gumbo admitted his side played second best to Caps for the better part of the match.
“I’m not really disappointed with the result. “Every dog has its day and today it was their day. The players’ attitude from the start was wrong, I really don’t know what happened,” said Gumbo. Caps were duly rewarded in the 18th minute with Kutsanzira’s bullet from inside the box hitting the nets.
Pakamisa added the second one right at the end of the first half with another powerful shot from close range to beat goalkeeper Tafadzwa Dube.
Platinum needed to react and they did that brilliantly with a goal early in the second half when Togara rose high in the box to head home an Ali Sadiki header.
The goal gave Gumbo’s men some hope as they started to dominate possession and looked the likeliest team to score.
Connor reacted by pulling out the tired-looking Edmore Chafungamoyo and brought in striker Gwekwerere. The change proved to be a masterstroke.
The former Dynamos striker made a strong run on the right of the midfield, beat Amini on the turn before crossing the ball to fellow striker Clive Kawinga who miscued his shot.
The ball kindly fell for Kutsanzira who fired a cracker past Dube.
The win was mired by a fracas outside the stadium when celebrating Caps supporters manhandled Dynamos defender David Kutyauripo who is alleged to have provoked them.
At Rufaro Stadium, a second half penalty converted by skipper Dananai Chinowawa helped army side Buffaloes see off a wasteful Harare City in another Castle Lager Premier Soccer League match.
The kick off was delayed by 30 minutes as the teams argued over a clash of uniforms. Harare City had threatened to boycott the match and play only started after Buffaloes changed only jerseys and stockings.
The home team was the better side in the first half as they carved out good chances, but their forays fizzled out in the final third because of poor play.
Felix Kuswatuka had a chance after 18 minutes but missed after a good cross from Silas Songani. The City striker shook his head in disbelief in the 23rd minute after finding the target only for the assistant referee to flag for offside.
In the 31st minute, Buffaloes goalkeeper Hopeful Bere failed to clear a corner kick and had defender Joseph Jambo to thank after he raced to clear the ball from the line.
In the second half, City coach Bigboy Mawiwi brought in Brighton Tuwaya for Witness Nyamutsaka in a bid to stabilise the defence. The visitors, however, got a good chance in the 66th minute but Roy Mwenga was denied by keeper Maxwell Nyamupanedengu with a classy stop.
But in the 72nd minute, Harare City striker Songani, who was full of running all afternoon, turned villain after he handled in the penalty box and referee Pedzisai Chadya pointed to the spot. Chinowawa took the responsibility — calmly beating Nyamupanedengu for the goal that decided the contest.
