Caps United have been handed a tough draw in the Chibuku Super Cup quarterfinals after they were paired against an in-form Shabanie Mine.
By Kevin Mapasure
The Premier Soccer League had by late yesterday not announced where the match will be played, but technically Shabanie will be the home team.
All matches will be played this weekend and there will be no Castle Lager Premier Soccer League action.
Shabanie’s home team status does, however, not guarantee them of hosting the match in their favourite hunting ground, Maglas Stadium.
The draw, which was conducted in Harare yesterday, saw Chapungu and How Mine being fixtured together while Black Rhinos will play Harare City.
Bulawayo City will clash with either Chicken Inn or Yadah in the other quarter-final match.
The outcome of the Yadah-Chicken Inn first round clash was still to be determined by late yesterday following the abandonment of the match last month.
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Yadah had just been awarded a penalty when Chicken Inn decided to walk off in protest with three minutes still to be played in the match.
An ad hoc committee is dealing with the matter and an announcement on the outcome could be made today.
In yesterday’s draw, it is the clash between Shabanie and Caps United that became the talking point with Bvaru Bvaru having proven to be quite a difficult side to contend with.
Shabanie booked their place in the quarter-finals with an away win over ZPC Kariba, while Caps United knocked out Ngezi Platinum Stars following a 1-0 away win.
With Caps United seemingly out of the title race, they are focusing all their energies on winning this competition, which carries a $75 000 cash prize in addition to the trophy.
Caps United chief executive officer Cuthbert Chitima yesterday said they always expected a tough draw, admitting that Shabanie are a tough team to beat.
“For me, Shabanie are a big team, they have been in the top-flight for some many years even though they have been in and out. They knocked out ZPC Kariba in a match they played away from home,” Chitima said. “With cup games, anything can happen. All the teams that are left in this competition want to win the cup because the league championship is now a four-team race.
But as Caps, we have said this has got to be the year that we reclaim the Cup Kings status. So we want to beat Shabanie so that we can progress to the next stage. We want to win this competition. Our players always rise when things are tough and we hope they can rise against Shabanie.”
The two teams played out draws when they met in the league.
Shabanie have proved to be a tough nut particularly against big teams having beaten Highlanders and recently held Dynamos at Maglas in a league match.
Bulawayo City, who produced a giant-killing act against Dynamos, will be hoping to continue their run when they meet either Yadah or Chicken Inn.
The Harare derby between Black Rhinos and Harare City is also likely to be an explosive one with both sides enduring a tough season where they are both threatened with relegation.
Chibuku Super Cup quarter-final draw:
Shabanie Mine v Caps United, Chapungu v How Mine, Black Rhinos v Harare City, Bulawayo City v Chicken Inn/Yadah.
